Twisted Melody
by Xchy
Summary: Upon meeting a 4-year old Naruto, Orochimaru sees a chance. He can further his quest for power with a Jinchuuriki under his control that Akatsuki don't know about. M for violence. UNFINISHED & ABANDONED
1. Prologue: A Chance Meeting

**AN: OK, this is something that I thought up recently, and I liked the idea so much that I had to start writing it. This is my first fanfiction, no any reviews will be useful, especially hints on how to write better, bits I could add, bits I could cut, etc. If you're confused on anything, PLEASE ask. I have no real idea what I'm doing at the moment, I'm learning as I go.**

**The premise is that Orochimaru, while still in Akatsuki, finds Naruto and kidnaps him, but decides that his quest for power is better served with a pet jinchuuriki, rather than handing him over to Pain.**

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**Prologue: A Chance Meeting**

Uzumaki Naruto giggled uncontrollably as he trotted away from the scene of his latest prank – a large, cartoon face drawn on the side of the Academy in bright pink paint. It wasn't a very good prank, but for a four-year-old, it involved some pretty impressive planning.

Naruto reckoned he wouldn't be missed from the orphanage for at least another few hours, and it would be a similar amount of time before the ANBU he'd ditched earlier to find him again. He'd worked out how to get away from the creepy masked ghosts at a very early age, and they'd never caught on to how he managed it. He giggled again. This was great! The whole day to himself, and no-one to yell at him or stop him from going places.

Places like, for example, the expansive forests surrounding Konoha. They were his favorite place to explore, full of secret nooks and crannies, and he could play ninja there for hours by himself without getting bored. There were no mean grownups to shoo him away either, which was always a plus.

He slipped over the walls with no difficulty, simply finding a spot where there were no guards and climbing over. Not that there were ever many guards, the village was far too safe to need them nowadays. He smiled broadly as he tottered across the top of the wall, before carefully climbing down the front. He didn't want to hurt himself before he could have his fun. That would negate the purpose of the whole trip.

Soon, the young boy was scampering about amongst the massive, overgrown trees, surrounded by the scent of leaf mold and the chirping of crickets. He vaulted gigantic tree roots, dived under low branches, and threw rocks at shrubs, pretending they were shuriken spinning towards an enemy. Of course, no-one could keep this up forever, but by the time Naruto found himself tiring it was already nearly dark.

This was entirely new to him. He'd never been out in the forest at night before, and was fascinated by how much it changed with the onset of dark. The noises started to change, the chattering of birds dieing away to be replaced with the odd rustle in the bushes or the occasional hoot. He idly wondered if there were wolves in the forest. Wolves would be pretty cool.

He had been so lost in amazement at the near-magical transformation of the forest that he had ignored a few simple facts: one, it was night, two, it was winter, and three, he was only wearing a thin t-shirt and shorts. This was all fine when he was running about or inside, but out in the wild, exposed to the elements, it most definitely was not. He was freezing.

Naruto wasn't too worried, however, as he knew there was a really cool hiding place nearby where he'd successfully managed to conceal himself from his usual guards for more than a day. It was a hollow old tree, with the entrance nearly undetectable in the shadows of its towering roots. In truth, Naruto had only found it because he'd fallen into the hole after tripping on a rock, but he didn't care. What mattered now was that he remembered it being warm, and covered, and safe. Not only that, but he was getting sleepy.

As he set off towards where he though his secret cubby was, he idly wondered whether he might be able to set a new record for how long he could stay hidden from the ANBU. He smirked to himself at the thought. He'd managed a day and a half before, but he reckoned he was already almost halfway to that. He jumped with glee, forgetting he was still walking, fell over his own feet, tumbled briefly, and found himself flat on his back, head resting on what felt like a rock, looking up at the underside of the forest canopy.

_That's weird. When did these trees get red bits on them?_ He wondered, brows furrowing.

"Would you mind telling me who you are, young man?" Demanded a sibilant voice from above him.

Startled, Naruto scrambled to his feet and looked around wildly, moving his head so fast that he had no chance of actually spotting anyone.

"Stop doing that, child. It is making me dizzy, and you still have not replied to my question. Who are you, and why is one so young outside the walls of Konoha at night?"

"Hey, I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the bestest ninja ever, and I'm gonna be Hokage, and then everyone's gonna think I'm so cool, and then they won't be mean to me, and then I'll be really happy, and then I can haverameneverydayandthen –" The child yelled, all in one breath, only to be cut off before he could finish by a cold, long-fingered hand clamped over his mouth.

"Look at me, child. I do not wish to hear your ceaseless, inane blathering. Your name is Uzumaki Naruto, and you are a resident of Konoha. How old are you?" Came the voice again, and now Naruto had a face to put with it. It was a deathly pale one, seemingly floating in the darkness in front of him.

As the hand was removed from his mouth, Naruto sucked in a great lungful of air and launched into another outburst, "I'm four years old and two months and three days and I was born on the tenth of October and why don't you have a body it's really creepy there's just a face and I dunno if you're a ghost are you a ghostmisterwhat'syournamewhy'syourheadfloa-" The stream was cut off again.

"Hmm. That is an interesting birthday you have, Naru-chan. Tell me something, you mentioned that people were mean to you. Do they ever call you a monster?" At this, the boy nodded. The corners of the pale face's mouth quirked up. "_Very_ interesting. I was, in fact, in the village but a few hours ago, talking to the Hokage about an intriguing young man. He said that this young man had the potential to be one of the best shinobi ever to come from the village. He told me that he wanted me, one of his own students, to teach this most talented young man. Do you know what he said this amazing individual's name was, Naru-chan?"

The stunned boy shook his head fervently, eyes wide with anticipation and excitement. _Wow, this guy's a student of the Old Man! And he knows something about awesome ninjas!_ He thought, practically vibrating with excitement.

"Well, I think you do know the name, Naru-chan. It is a name very important to you, after all." The face's grin widened further. "Well, I think their last name was … Uzukaze? Uzikimi? Ahh, wait, but it was Uzumaki!"

"Wow there's someone else with my name that's really cool but kinda sad 'cos they might be related but no-one's ever come to find me at the -" The hand returned once more.

"I think you are misunderstanding me, Naru-chan. The last name was Uzumaki. The first name was Naruto. The Hokage was talking to me about _you_. He told me he needed me to take you away from the village as soon as possible and start training you right away." The face's grin widened further, revealing the tips of a pair of fangs. "So, Naru-chan, are you willing to come with me to start your training? It would be _such_ a _shame_ if you did not become the best ninja of your generation because you missed vital training."

"YEAH! I'M READY RIGHT NOW! I don't need nothing 'cos this is pretty much all I got and this is so cool and what's your name mister if you're gonna be sensei I gotta know your name and it's still creepyyou'vegotnobodywhydon'tyouhav-" Hand, meet face.

"You can call me Orochimaru-onii-san, Naru-chan. Or Oro-nii if that is easier. I am not so much older than you, you know. The first thing we will need to start training is that voice of yours. You are aware that you ware very loud, yes? Ninja cannot be loud. It is very dangerous." The face looked as though it was about to continue on, but noticed the boy's drooping eyelids. "We will start our lessons tomorrow. I will carry you while you sleep, as we have a long way to travel before we can begin our training proper."

With that, there was a rustle of fabric, and then the boy disappeared into the missing-nin's voluminous, red-cloud covered robes, his head poking from the neck of the robes and resting on Orochimaru's shoulder as the Sannin held him piggyback.

"Get some sleep, Naru-chan. You will need it." Smirked the man.

This would be to his advantage. Oh, would it be to his advantage…


	2. First Blood

**AN: OK, the next few chapters are going to be snippets of Naruto's life as he grows up with Orochimaru. I'm going to start the first big story bit when he hits 11, which will be in 3-4 chapters, hopefully. Anyways, hope you enjoy, and any suggestions are welcome!**

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**First Blood**

Orochimaru rested his chin on his hands, thin lips curved upwards into a faint grin. He was watching his young protégé fighting. The boy was battling two bandits, the sole, unlucky survivors of a group Orochimaru had wiped out recently. He had decided that six years old was plenty for the child's first kill, and was worried that if it was left any longer, the boy would become weak and soft.

"Naru-chan, you are putting a little too much force into your blocks. Your aim is to deflect, for you are not yet strong enough to break with them, so try and move faster, not harder, alright?" Orochimaru said warmly, a full smile now on his face.

Oh, but the boy had been troublesome to begin with. He was immune to all the drugs which would have enhanced his development, which both pleased and infuriated Orochimaru. He had very little natural talent, atrocious chakra control, and the largest chakra pool he'd ever seen. So there was potential there, but how to get to it, that had been the problem.

Of course, the solution had come from Naruto himself. Only a week into their training, the boy had become frustrated at the slow pace and exploded, asking why they were doing so little, boasting that he could manage three times as much training every day. Spitefully, Orochimaru had indulged him. He never thought he could be surprised, but the child's resilience astonished him. He'd taken the tripled training, and then, when he was supposed to be resting, trained some more. What was even more impressive was that the boy showed no ill effects after a single night's sleep.

Suddenly there hadn't been enough hours in the day. Orochimaru had to come up with ever more complicated methods of combining various different training exercises just to keep the boy progressing. Not that the child got much out of it for his investment, but considering how much time and effort went into his training, the results could only be massive improvement.

It had become so difficult to keep him on the basic training techniques that Orochimaru had to teach him a few basic jutsu to keep him motivated. Of course, these too were training methods – he had the boy hold a henge throughout the whole day's training, or kawarimi every few minutes to precise spots in the training hall. He'd finally become so frustrated at having to supervise physical training for twelve hours, and then spend six hours teaching theory, that he had taught the boy Kage Bunshin so he could cram the theory and physical sessions into one.

Of course, when he had discovered just how many clones the young jinchuuriki could produce, he immediately started teaching the boy five or six different things at once, to the point where it was exhausting _him_ more than the child. It was a good job that they had reached one of Orochimaru's secret bases by this point, as otherwise he believed he would have either killed the boy, or gone insane from exhaustion. He'd handed the majority of the child's training off to some of his better-qualified subordinates, and only supervised the boy in areas he enjoyed teaching.

Like this, for example. Real, life-or-death combat. Well, for the bandits, at least. If Naruto couldn't beat these two, even with the 'no jutsus' ban on him for the duration of the fight, Orochimaru would not just _kill_ the boy. Oh no. The sheer manpower the child required was enough to make his failure punishable with the slowest, most inventive tortures Orochimaru could come up with, but the fact he housed one of the bijuu as well meant that he had no excuse for failure. None at all.

Of course, the boy's failure could still be a success for Orochimaru. He was sure Pain would love to get hold of the nine-tails, and it was only the boy's potential to be a devastating weapon, a pet entity of destruction, that stopped the Sannin from handing him over in exchange for more power.

His attention flicked back to the present as his young ward scored a vicious hit on the larger of his two opponents, a giant, burly man who was swinging a rusty axe bigger than the boy he was fighting against. Or would have been, had said boy not severed the tendon in the bandit's left elbow just a moment ago.

"Very good, Naru-chan. Now, pay attention, just because you crippled one arm, it does not mean he cannot still fight. Make sure to finish him when you get the chance." Orochimaru lectured.

**oXoXoXo**

Naruto span just in time to intercept an attack from the second bandit, a smaller man armed with a double-edged sword, and countered with his other hand, flinging a brace of shuriken into the man's lower body. The boy jumped away, eyeing both of his opponents carefully. The big, stupid-looking one was still mobile, but could only use one arm. The smaller one was bleeding to death from a lucky shuriken to the femoral artery.

So, the big one was the obvious threat. Hmmm. How to do this. He had got inside the man's guard the last time after a quick roll, but doubted he would get away with it again. He could wear him down with thrown weapons, but he had few left. He absently tossed a few shuriken the man's way, but the bandit turned his body so the weapons impacted on his already-damaged arm, doing no significant further harm.

He could run him down, keep him moving until he was just too tired to keep fighting, but Oro-nii had told him he had fifteen minutes to finish the fight. He'd spent ten of them gauging his opponent's skills, and a further minute to cripple and mortally wound them. Four minutes then. Should be doable.

Of course, if he'd been allowed to use his jutsus, it would be different. He'd have finished this within the first two minutes, easy. But then, Oro-nii was trying to teach him not to rush in without thinking. It was pretty hard to hold back, but if it made Oro-nii happy, he was happy to try his hardest.

He turned back to the smaller bandit, and found the man already slumped on the floor, his own blood pooling around him. No more spurts of the red fluid from his injured leg, so the guy was obviously dead. Hmm. Sword, small enough to be useable? No, but he could use it as a distraction.

Naruto dashed forwards, grabbling the sword and turning his forwards momentum into a spin, turning once before launching the blade at the surviving bandit, who raised his axe to block it.

Naruto darted towards the bandit, taking advantage of his displaced guard and distracted attention, and buried a kunai in the man's left lung, then sprang away, launching the last of his shuriken towards the man's face.

With a sickening crunch of bone, they impacted, the bandit overbalancing backwards and falling to the ground. He lay there, twitching slightly, until his body finally figured out it was dead.

"Oro-nii! Oro-nii! I did it! Just like you said, I got the bad guys!" Naruto cheered, but not too loudly. He knew Oro-nii didn't like loud.

Orochimaru simply smiled indulgently. "Very well done, Naru-chan. I am proud of you. Now, what are the only two rules for ninja?"

The boy smiled broadly, "Rule number one is do what you want, rule number two is protect those you love!"

Orochimaru nodded, "Who will you protect then, Naru-chan?"

"Only me and Oro-nii, of course!"

"Good boy. Remember, no-one else is important. You cannot trust anyone else. Those other than us are merely there to be used as we will, yes?"

"Of course! Only me an' Oro-nii matter."

He stood and walked over to the boy, pausing to ruffle his hair before moving on. "Do you want to come and help me with my experiments?"

"I can? Really? You've only let me watch up 'til now, Oro-nii!" Naruto blurted, jogging to catch up with the man.

"Fufufufufu. You have impressed me, Naru-chan. You deserve a reward. You can even use the scalpel if you want."

"YES! So cool, Oro-nii. Will they scream like when you do it?"

"Oh, I think they might, young man. But only if you do it properly, yes? So you have to make sure to follow my instructions. You must also be careful, we do not want them to die before the experiment finishes, now do we?"

"No, Oro-nii, that wouldn't be much fun. I know it makes you sad when they die too early, an' that makes me sad too." Grinned Naruto, reaching up to clutch Orochimaru's hand.


	3. Naruto Lends A Hand

**Naruto Lends A Hand**

Orochimaru's breath came in quick, ragged bursts as he jumped from tree to tree, half-stumbling on occasion but never slowing as he fled. He clutched his left hand in his right, the stump of his left wrist dripping blood down his robes. He had made quite possibly the biggest error he could have. Itachi's mind had been too strong, his bloodlimit too powerful, and Orochimaru had paid for underestimating the man.

He had been traveling through most of the day and all of the night, and the sun was rising once again by the time he reached his nearest hideout. He was cursing under his breath as he entered the underground bunker. This was not good. Akatsuki would definitely no longer want him as a member, not now that he had attacked one of his fellow members. Ironic, as Kakuzu went through a partner every few months, but that was beside the point. Kakuzu could be trusted so long as there was money involved, but Pain knew that Orochimaru was only interested in power.

He had been so close! He would have been in possession of the best body imaginable, he could have bred the bloodline into children who he could then train and possess once they were at the optimum age, he would have been truly immortal, but that damned Itachi had to spoil all of that. Orochimaru kicked the wall in frustration, leaving a spiderweb of cracks. To add insult to injury, the Uchiha had done something to his left hand, something that prevented him from reattaching it.

Orochimaru sighed. That was enough of that. Throwing a tantrum would not achieve anything, and there was much to do. He hadn't been expecting to split from Akatsuki so soon, but he still had a few contingencies in place. He would have to start the main plan earlier than would be best, but that couldn't be helped. It wasn't as though there was just the one Uchiha left, after all. He would simply have to wait longer before possessing the younger brother.

That was secondary for the moment, however, as the first thing he needed was a new body. He didn't have anything special prepared, and the only body nearby with any sort of special power was Naruto's. Orochimaru shuddered at the thought. No, he would rather not risk a battle against the Nine-Tails. Especially not for such a young body, he hated having to be small and weak again. He'd risk it for the Sharingan, but that really wasn't an option right now.

No, he'd need to find a suitable body. This one was still useable, but he rather liked having both hands available. He wanted a ninja body, but he didn't want to use one of his few subordinates – it was hard enough keeping his ninja as it was, without a real village to unite them, and he didn't want to damage morale even further by so casually using one of his own. It would have been his first choice, otherwise.

Where to go to find the needed vessel though? Cloud and Stone were out, both being far too insular not to notice him. Leaf, of course, was always on the lookout, though he made a point of slipping into the village at least once a month, just to prove he still could. They would notice him taking another of their ninja though. Sand, perhaps, but then again, with such a small population of ninja, they would certainly investigate one going missing. That ruled out all the minor villages too, not that he would bother with them in the first place. The backwater scum never produced any real ninja of worth anyway. Which left Mist.

Mist was a good option. It provided a number of benefits, with strong ninja, lots of hiding places, and most importantly, he had a base on one of the islands in the same country. Even better, the village had the highest rate of desertion of any ninja village, so they would neither notice nor care when one of their people disappeared. Even better, Sasori didn't know about his base there, and so neither did Akatsuki. To put the icing on the cake, Akatsuki were hated in Mist more than in any other Hidden Village. So, Mist it was then.

He'd have to destroy this base anyway, as Itachi would be able to track him here, and he knew Sasori knew of it. It was only a small set of laboratories and cells, but the loss still rankled. He'd have to take Naruto with him as well, he didn't want to risk his old allies finding the boy while Orochimaru wasn't there to keep him protected. He didn't want to lose his weapon now that it was becoming so finely honed. Ah, but if only the boy had the Sharingan, and didn't have the Nine-Tails sealed in him, he would be the perfect host. Hmm. The Sharingan would be difficult, but perhaps another bloodlimit… After all, Kakashi had no difficulties with his stolen eye, and the man was a poorly trained idiot.

No, time to think about that later. Right now he needed to set up the self-destruction seals in the base, get Naruto, and leave. He was sure Sasori would not forgive him for his betrayal, and Orochimaru was expecting the man to be here within the day. It was irritating, to be certain, but nothing he couldn't work with.

Passing one of his labs, he paused to grab a jar filled with preservatives, into which he dropped his severed hand. Concealing the container in his backpack, he continued on.

As soon as he reached the central lab for the base, he began moving his remaining hand rapidly through a set of seals, focusing his chakra into the numerous seals covering the floor, walls and ceiling.

"Emergency procedure 23. All personnel to leave within 30 minutes and report to their secondary positions. Be warned that anyone remaining after 30 minutes will die. Self destruct sequence activated." He said, his voice echoing through the corridors and sounding loudly in every room.

There was the expected reaction, a few shouts of alarm and panic, but otherwise orderly and rapid departure. Orochimaru allowed himself a small smile. His ninja were well trained and well disciplined.

He made his way to Naruto's room, and opened the door to find the boy already fully dressed, packing the last of his things into his backpack. Naruto looked up as Orochimaru entered the room.

"Hey, Oro-nii, I'm nearly ready. What happened?" He asked.

"I made … a mistake. You remember I told you about how I change bodies?" At this, the boy nodded, "Well, the body I chose was too strong. Now he knows where I am, and will probably be coming here with allies. I thought it prudent to abandon the base."

With this, Orochimaru backed out through the door, gesturing for Naruto to follow. "We are going to go on a trip, Naru-chan. We get to go on a boat. We are going to the Land of Water. We will continue your training while there, and find a new body for me, as this one is rather past its usefulness." He waved the stump of his left arm to accentuate this fact.

"Wow! You weren't kidding when you said that guy was strong, Oro-nii, if he got your hand. When I get strong, can I kill him for you? Please?"

"When you get strong enough, then nothing would please me more, Naru-chan. But for now, we have to get to a port and book passage. While we travel, you will need to keep up a henge. So, let us review the basics behind this technique…"

**oXoXoXo**

Orochimaru rested his hand on his cold, clammy brow and groaned piteously. He knew there was a reason he hardly ever went to the Land of Water. Getting seasick certainly ranked close to the top of his list. He'd been laid up in bed since an hour into the trip, throwing his guts up if he did more than drink lukewarm water or sip at thin gruel. It was now five days in, and he was getting fed up with it. The worst thing was that they were not even halfway through the voyage, so he would be like this for another week or so. The very thought made his stomach heave again, but he hadn't eaten or drunk recently, so all he threw up was a thin trickle of bile.

If they came under attack now, they were all doomed, he had decided. This was mostly due to the fact that he was fully prepared to take a sword to the neck just to stop his suffering. It was made worse by the fact that Naruto remained cheerfully immune to anything other than direct physical harm, and had spent the past few days exploring the ship, talking to Orochimaru, pulling stupid stunts off the rigging, talking to Orochimaru, training, talking to Orochimaru, and also spent a few hours each day talking to Orochimaru.

The Sannin had never realized quite how irritating a bored seven-year-old could be. A bored seven-year-old with the boundless energy of a force of nature, and a need to chat that matched. At least the boy didn't shout anymore, but that was small consolation, the main topics of conversation for the child being food or training. The thought of either of which made Orochimaru fight to hold down his lunch. So he'd given the boy a series of intense training exercises to do when he woke up, and then instructed him to spend the rest of his time trying to keep hidden from the other passengers, all the while gathering as much information as he could, and then writing it down at the end of each day.

Naruto loved it. It was training and a mission all in one, and it was fun to boot! He was finding out so many cool things, like how the cook was eating the meat from the pantry and blaming its disappearance on rats, or how several of the other passengers were having affairs with each other, or, most interesting, that three of the other passengers were also ninja, and only one of them wore a forehead protector. The one with the forehead protector was boring, spending most of his time in his cabin, and Naruto recognized that the symbol proclaimed him a member of Mist. The two undeclared shinobi were far more interesting. The first, a twenty-something man who called himself Ren, was cheerful and smiling, and spent most of his time gambling and drinking with the others onboard. However, Naruto had spotted him sneaking about the ship at night, and he'd even seen him break into the captain's room once. Not that it bothered Naruto what the man was doing on the ship, he was no threat, as any ninja who snuck about that badly and sucked so much at detecting others could hardly even qualify for Genin rank. Naruto reckoned Oro-nii could kill the man even in his current condition, and probably wouldn't even notice he'd done it.

The third ninja, however, was truly fascinating. She was a young woman, probably barely into her twenties, and dressed as a simple peasant, but moved with a flawless grace that betrayed her training. Naruto had seen her see him spying on her, and he suspected that was only because she _wanted_ him to know that she knew. He thought she was probably Jounin level, and felt justified in his assessment when he realized that she'd not given her name to anyone, carefully deflecting any questions in such a way that no-one noticed that it had happened. The woman was good, and she hid it well, but after spending so much time with Oro-nii and his few Jounin tutors Naruto could spot a skilled ninja within moments.

Naruto didn't give any of them much further thought until, seven days into the trip, the one declared ninja turned up dead. There was nothing suggesting foul play, he had just … died. Of a heart attack, apparently. Which was very odd, considering the man was probably only in his late twenties. Old for a ninja, but nowhere near old enough for a heart attack. Naruto could, however, think of at least half a dozen poisons which were untraceable and would produce the same symptoms. And the Mist-nin had bumped into the female ninja the day before, and had stared at her, mouth open in shock, for a full ten seconds before turning around and running back to his cabin. He'd reacted to the woman as though she was going to kill, dismember and eat him right there on deck. He was probably right about the "kill" part, considering that not a day later he turned up a corpse.

That had certainly grabbed Oro-nii's attention. He'd instructed Naruto to look through the dead ninja's belongings and see if he could find any information on the woman.

And find it he did. The dead ninja had been a low-status Chuunin from Mist, but, because he had been out of the country on a long-term scouting mission (According to his paperwork, at least), he had been provided with a copy of Mist's Bingo Book. It was a great deal thicker than other such bounty lists Naruto had seen, and Oro-nii informed him that it was because of the number of missing-nin Mist generated. Villages didn't bother including anyone below a B-rank in their Bingo Books, unless the ninja in question originally hailed from that Hidden Village, and so there were a great number of C, D, and even the odd E-rank ninja in the Mist version.

The woman's face and profile was in the book, and she was, apparently, classed as only B-rank. Her name was Michiko Aoi, though Oro-nii said she'd be using a fake name. She had fled Mist after a string of violent robberies, taking with her an impressive haul in jewels and precious metals. The bounty on her head was fairly small, but bringing her in alive would net the bounty collector twenty times as much. Naruto was delighted as he saw Oro-nii's smile grow wider and wider as he read through her listing.

"Fufufufu, Naru-chan, it seems that the gods have smiled on us. This woman is perfect for our needs. Do you think that you could approach her and befriend her?" Orochimaru asked, "Women seem to have a weakness for cute little boys, no matter if they are ninja or civilian." He added, sneering in contempt.

"Of course, Oro-nii. But you said we shouldn't com'romise our 'dentities when we traveled. What d'you want me to call myself?"

"Hmm. I will be Hibiki, and you will be my son, Arashi. Our henges look similar enough that the explanation will be accepted. The rest of the details are up to you, Ara-chan."

Naruto nodded, grinning. A proper mission! This was just like the start of some assassination or kidnap missions he'd read about in his textbooks. You had to befriend the target or someone close to them, then you could strike when they were vulnerable! He nearly danced on the spot, he was so excited.

**oXoXoXo**

The next day, Naruto wandered aimlessly about the ship, out in the open for the first time since boarding. Several of his fellow passengers looked at him oddly, not recalling seeing the small, red-headed child before, but quickly put him out of their minds. What was another kid, after all?

Naruto spent almost two hours on his meandering before he ran into the kunoichi he'd been looking for. Literally, in his case. He bumped into her leg and fell over, deliberately scraping his elbow on the way down. He forced small tears into the corners of his eyes, and sniffed slightly, cradling the injured arm.

"You alright, kid?" The woman asked, hunkering down to get to his eye level.

"I hurt my elbow, nee-chan…" He whimpered, holding out his injury for inspection.

She looked at his face, sighed, and pulled out a small first aid kit from a pouch on her hip. She carefully cleaned and wrapped his miniscule injury, then ruffled his hair.

"Hey, stop crying. Boys shouldn't cry from something like that. You'll never impress the ladies if you grow up such a wuss." She reprimanded.

"Sorry, nee-chan. It's all better now though!"

Naruto looked up at her, a tentative smile on his face. She smiled back, then offered him her hand. He let her help him up, and kept hold of the hand.

"C'mon nee-chan, I wanna show you the rest of the ship! You gotta see some of the cool stuff!" He shouted, running off with her hand still clasped in his own. Laughing slightly, she followed.

_Wow, I misjudged her. She'd never survive long as a ninja being this trusting. Doesn't she know there's no-one you can believe but yourself? And Oro-nii, of course, but he's an exception 'cos he's so awesome._ Naruto thought, all the while holding up the happy, giggling façade.

**oXoXoXo**

Several hours later, Naruto and the kunoichi had stopped their madcap dash, Naruto pretending to be utterly exhausted from the tour of the ship. He was sat on the floor, his back against one of the uprights, while the older woman was still stood, leaning back with her elbows resting nonchalantly on the rail.

"So, what's your name, kiddo?" Asked the woman.

"'M called Arashi. Wha's your name, nee-chan?" He said.

"You can call me Hana, Arashi-kun."

"Waaa, what a pretty name, Hana-nee!"

"Thank you, Arashi-kun. What are you doing on the ship? I take it you aren't alone?"

Naruto recognized that the woman was more than casually interested. Perhaps he'd played up the innocent kid act a little too much? Or perhaps she was simply finally paying attention to the little paranoias every shinobi developed, the ones which told you that there was no such thing as someone genuinely interested in befriending you just for friendship's sake. Or perhaps he was simply reading too much into it and she was just intrigued.

"'M with my Daddy. He got hurt real bad an' can't walk so good no more, so he says we're going to stay with some fam'ly."

"And what about your mother, Arashi-kun?"

"Daddy says she went 'way somewhere. He says it's better than the farm we was living in."

The woman's eyes went slightly watery at this. _Wow, is she really this easy, or is she playing me just as much as I'm playing her?_ Naruto wondered. His line of thought was cut off as he was swept into a hug, crushing him tight against her.

"Tell your 'Daddy' I know he's been watching me, brat. I haven't done anything to him yet because he's not proved a threat. Keep it that way, and we all walk away happy, right?" She whispered into his ear. "Don't think I haven't felt his eyes on me. He must be a decent ninja if I never spotted him, but I know he was there, and the other two onboard are so pathetic they'd never have managed it."

Naruto almost smiled. Almost. But it would have blown his cover, as the woman obviously thought he was no ninja. Instead, he broke down into relieved sobs. Hana was so shocked she let him go and moved back.

"Y…You're a ninja too?" He wailed. "P…Please! Help me! He makes me …" He cut off, looking ashamed.

Hana stared at him, face paling. She knelt once more, drawing close to the boy again, and rested one soothing hand on his shoulder, visibly wincing as he flinched away from the contact.

"He makes you what, Arashi-kun?" She asked though clenched teeth.

"B…Bad … th…things…"

The woman tensed as though she'd been struck.

"I…I only got…got let out t…today. H…He didn't want me leaving while I was s…still he…healing … I w…was bad, s…so he …" Naruto trailed off, looking despondently at the deck, forcing tears out of his eyes to drip onto the wood planking.

The woman's face was a carefully controlled mask of fury. _Perhaps she went though that sort of thing as a kid? Mist is renowned for its brutality and barbaric practices, and lets its ninja get away with pretty much anything so long as it doesn't involve other ninja of the village._ Naruto considered, glad that his ploy had worked.

"Arashi-kun, where is your … 'Daddy' now?" She asked, her voice deadly controlled.

"I…I think he's a…asleep in th…the cabin. C…can you h…help? Please?" He begged, putting as much hope into the last word as he could, without having to burst out in laughter at how pathetic he was being.

"Just show me the way."

**oXoXoXo**

Naruto took Hana to the hallway leading to the door to Oro-nii's cabin, growing obviously more and more scared the closer they got. She patted him gently on the head.

"Stay here, Arashi-kun. You don't need to see this."

With that, she began to stalk carefully down the corridor. She didn't notice Naruto draw a poisoned senbon from his sleeve. She did notice when it hit her leg, but she was unconscious before she'd finished turning to face him. He grinned. Oro-nii would be so pleased!

He quickly dragged the unconscious woman into Oro-nii's room, smiling at the proud look the Sannin was giving him.

"That was very fast, Ara-chan. Get one of the prison scrolls from my pack and seal her away, please. I take it no-one saw you?"

"I _am_ a ninja, Oro-nii. Please give me a little credit. I led her through the sections of the ship that were empty." Naruto said, smirking.

"Fufufufu, very good job, Ara-chan."

"You can stop calling me that now, Oro-nii." Naruto complained as he lugged the woman onto an unfurled scroll and channeled a little chakra, causing her to disappear in a small puff of smoke.

His mentor had the decency to look a little embarrassed. "I am sorry, Ara-chan, but I cannot. Now that my position in Akatsuki is compromised, I intend to found my own Hidden Village. I run one in all but name at the moment in any case, but I will be far more exposed once I do, and so too will you. You can no longer be Uzumaki Naruto. I felt that the sooner we changed your name, the better. You may choose a different name if you wish, and you will, of course, need a new last name too."

Naruto thought for a minute, then smiled. "I never really liked Naruto anyways. An' if you chose the name, then it's gotta be great! Arashi is fine." He smirked at the Sannin once more. "As for last names, how about … Hebirou?"

Orochimaru chuckled. "How very fitting. Hebirou Arashi it is then. I have to say, Ara-chan, you have made excellent progress. I think you will need to be instated as a true ninja once my Hidden Village become reality."

Naruto did a little victory dance inside. A real ninja. The first step on his path to power. Soon he would be even more use to Oro-nii!

**oXoXoXo**

Several weeks later, Naruto handed Orochimaru his new clothes, ones sized to fit his new, female body.

"So, should I call you Oro-nee now?" He said, raising an eyebrow.

Orochimaru chuckled and swatted the boy's head.

* * *

**AN: Wow, that's almost triple what I wrote for the other chapters. I think it looks better though.**

**Naruto is going to be referred to as Hebirou Arashi from now on, as he now thinks of himself as such.**

**A quick runthrough of terms if you don't know them, as I realize some people don't know all of them and I know from personal experience it's a pain reading through something and not knowing the terms.**

**Nii-san / nii-chan – Literally "Brother". Can be used as a term of endearment. The –chan suffix is less formal.**

**Nee-san / nee-chan – Literally "Sister". Is used in the same way as nii-san.**

**-kun – suffix used towards younger boys, mostly.**

**-chan – suffix used towards girls, mostly, or to make something "cutesy". Hence why Orochimaru's use of it for Naruto is so creepy.**

**Hebirou – Hebi meaning "snake" and rou meaning, in this instance, "son". Suitable for Orochimaru's apprentice, no?**

**Arashi – "storm". Was also one of the most popular names for the 4****th**** Hokage amongst fans before his real name was released. I liked the irony.**

**As always, I hope you enjoy reading, and drop me a review with any comments or suggestions.**

**NEXT CHAPTER: Arashi encounters the last survivor of a bloodlimit clan.**


	4. Interlude: Bedtime Story

**Interlude: Bedtime Story**

"Many, many years ago, when the world was still fresh, and the gods still walked amongst us, a boy was born to a humble farming family. He was an unremarkable child, but as he grew he became unruly and prideful. Finally, his parents could brook no more of his incessant disobedience and boasting, and cast him from their household, declaring that one so talented as he claimed himself to be should make his own way in the world.

The boy, long of speech but short of action, suffered greatly in the untender embrace of the world around him. He learned that words must be tempered with actions, lesson after lesson beaten into his bones. Before one claims to be mighty, one must be mightier still, or chance that one cannot prove that might. The boy wished to be able to prove his words beyond doubt, and so he dedicated himself to becoming the mightiest of all.

And so the boy grew to become a man, peerless in the art of combat, and he traveled the world, proclaiming his might to all, and destroying those who dared to doubt it. He shouted from the mountaintops, he boasted in the streets, he swaggered through the forests, always, always demanding a challenge, a new fight, a true foe who would test his skills.

The gods, we know, are hard to rouse. But his hubris was so great that even the intangible ones could not ignore his challenge.

The gods of blades went against him, all steel edges and gleaming points, and he struck them to the ground and left them tangled wreckage. The gods could accept this, for they value the strength to protect one's claims.

The gods of war descended upon him, covered in lacquered armour and festooned with weapons of all types, and he smote them limb from limb. Again, this the gods could accept, for strength tempered with skill is better valued.

The god of honorable combat challenged him to a duel, and here his pride destroyed him. For, though he was a master of combat, the man was but a man, and had a man's weaknesses. He battled for nine days and nine nights, but at the end of it he was tired, weakened from the struggle. Had he yielded, and accepted that he was lesser than the gods, his fate would have been different. But he could not accept that he could lose. And so, when his foe's concentration broke for a moment, he cheated. He threw a handful of sand into the eyes of the god, and, as the god tried to clear its vision, ran it through.

Now, the gods had accepted the defeat of many of their members, but that was in honorable battle. To cheat in a duel was unthinkable, for the gods are bound by many laws, and could not conceive of them being broken against them.

And so the man sealed his fate. As the form of his last opponent dissipated from around his blade, the earth shook, the skies wept, and the mountains trembled. Around him arose the forms of those highest amongst the gods, those who had created all, those who ruled over land and sea and air, and they judged him.

For his foolishness, he would never die. He would live for eternity, ever aging, ever rotting, even unto dust, but he would never know release. Until the end of all would he persist.

This was a terrible punishment, and even the gods wept to hand it down, and took pity on the man. They decreed that, if he could craft the perfect sword, he would be permitted to finally pass on.

The man scoffed at their curse, believing it to be more a blessing, and claiming, in his arrogance, that he would never make the sword, even if it meant that he would live a thousand thousand years as dust on the wind.

The gods knew better, as they have lived for untold millions of years, what a punishment eternal life was. They knew that he would beg for release before the end of two lifetimes.

And he did. His ancient form little more than bones covered in leathery skin, he cursed all the gods that he could not die. He had jumped from the highest cliff in the world, but simply shattered his bones, giving him endless pain. He had cut off his own head, but had only given himself more agony, as his wound would never heal, and his head now had to be stitched to his neck. He dived into the deepest oceans, but merely soaked his body in water. Finally, he surrendered to the terms dictated by the gods.

It was not to be so easy to craft the blade as he had boasted. No blacksmith would teach him their craft, for he was a terrifying apparition, and so he watched from the shadows for fifty years, imitating the motions of smiths, learning their techniques, stealing their secrets. For a further fifty years he toiled, building his forge, crafting his tools, honing his skills.

Then he began to make swords. He smelted ore, hammered steel and iron and lead and many other metals, folded layer upon layer and then folded again, and his blades were poor and weak. He hammered and folded and smelted again, and his blades were better. A hundred times he folded and smelted and hammered, and each time his blades improved. But there are limits to normal metals, and he reached them after endless years of effort. He knew that his best blade was worthless.

So he decided that he needed new materials. He searched high and low for better steel, superior heat, unparalleled water.

At the peak of the highest mountain in the world, he found a spring into which welled the purest water.

In the deepest depths of the underworld he found rivers of liquid rock, heat enough for any smith.

And in the blood of men he found the best iron a smith could want.

He scavenged battlefields for a hundred years, draining corpses of their blood and refining the iron from within. For one hundred and eight days he worked the metal, folding and folding and folding, using the heat of the river of rock, until he forged his blade. He quenched it in the blood of many more, and when the blade was finished, it was darkest black, eating all light near it.

He returned to the surface with his blade, and plunged it, point first, into a river. A passing leaf was sliced in two by the blade, and the two halves stuck to the blade, shriveling into dust before his eyes. He knew that this was not the blade.

For a thousand years he traversed the world, seeking honorable duels with mighty swordsmen. He had worked himself a suit of metal armor, inside which he was naught but dust, but still he strove to forge his blade. His work was far slower now, for mighty swordsmen are few and far between, and it takes a great many men to provide the steel for a single blade. But the blood shed in honorable combat produced far better steel than that from desecrated corpses.

And so he forged his second true blade at the roof of the world, the steel heated by coal and wood, and quenched the blade in the purest water. And when he was done, the blade was whiter than fresh-fallen snow, blinding to look at. And when he tested this blade in a river, he saw that the leaves flowed around it, never touching the blade. And he knew once more that this blade was not that which he sought.

Sorrowful, he took both his blades and broke them, shattering each into a million million fragments. He cast these fragments into the air, and they scattered to every end of the world. Then he knew true regret, for in his sorrow he had not realized that the blades, bought together, neither ate light nor emitted it, and were simply beautiful swords.

For a thousand years upon a thousand years he wandered the earth, seeking every last speck of his blades. He finally found every piece, and began to forge his final blade. He smelted the metals together in the depths of the underworld, heating the metal over and again as he worked it, beating the blood-steel into the perfect form. He worked for many years on the blade, every time he believed himself finished finding it could be folded once more, until the weapon had an edge that was invisible to the eye.

He ran from the depths to the highest peak, blade glowing hotter than white, to quench it in the only worthy spring, and at last, his blade was done.

It was not good enough.

He cast it into the air, caring not where it landed, and sat, at the peak of the highest mountain in the world, and decided that he would do no more. He would wait there for the end, and he would no longer dance to the tune the gods played for him.

And this is how the Kusanagi, the one true sword, came to be forged."

Orochimaru smiled thinly as he finished his story, looking down at the small blond boy tucked up in bed. The boy grinned broadly in return. As he closed the book, he delivered his final comment.

"And the moral of this story, Naru-chan, is that if you are going to cheat, don't get caught."


	5. Bone to Pick

**AN: Sorry it took so long to get this up, but I went home for Christmas and so have been quite busy, then forgot to bring my laptop power cable with me, so yeah :/. Writers block also hit right after the first section. Hope you enjoy this chapter, it was a pain to get written :/. **

**Also, any comments welcome, I hope I'm improving, and any suggestions will help.**

**Remember, Naruto is now Arashi.**

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* * *

  
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**Bone to Pick**

Arashi was bored. Very bored. He would even go so far as to say that he was very, very, very bored. He wondered if it was possible to die from terminal boredom, and concluded that it wasn't, as otherwise he would be six feet under by now.

Oro-nii hadn't been able to pay much attention to him recently, as he was busy organizing things so he could take over Rice Country. That and interrogating the grey-haired man who had tried to infiltrate the base. Which meant that Arashi was stuck with his boring, uninspired Jounin tutor. He didn't even know the man's name. Not that he hadn't been _told_ it, he simply didn't care enough about the man to remember it. And the man wouldn't teach him any new jutsus either!

"Stingy bastard…" He muttered under his breath.

Arashi was balancing on one finger, feet in the air, and doing press-ups. This would not have been particularly challenging, but he had to do it balanced on a senbon needle. The exercise required constant focus and excellent chakra control, and Arashi was already sweating from exertion. It was only his 200th press-up, and he had another 300 to go before he would have to switch to the other hand. If he fell or cut himself, 10 more would be added to each side. _Not that I've ever had to do extra yet, _he thought smugly. He'd tripled his training weights since he'd come to the base, and was considering doubling his current weights, just so he'd have a proper challenge.

The weights were very special pieces of equipment, and were gifts for his eighth birthday from Oro-nii. They looked like dull grey leather straps, tightly crisscrossed around his forearms and lower legs. They were, in fact, chakra-reactive, changing weight depending on how much chakra you put into them. Most people didn't use them, as they required a constant source of chakra to keep working, but chakra was something Arashi had in spades. The downside most people saw in the weights was just another upside for him, as it trained his chakra control and helped to enhance his chakra capacity at the same time as training his muscles. Oro-nii was very strict about the weights, however, and only let Arashi use them every other day. According to him, if Arashi didn't train with them off as much as with them on, it would damage his potential. Since it was Oro-nii saying this, and he knew everything, Arashi was happy to agree.

It had been almost a year and a half since they arrived in the Land of Water, and during this time Arashi had grown in leaps and bounds, in more ways than one. He had sprouted up at least half a foot, now standing at an even five foot in height. He'd also begun to grow outwards a little, showing a surprising degree of physical maturity. Unbeknownst to Arashi, this was due to the influence of the Nine-Tails' chakra. He simply thought it was cool, and left it at that.

His ninja skills had increased drastically as well. In addition to the standard jutsus all ninja seemed to know – _kawarimi, bunshin, henge_ and _shunshin_ – he had learned one of Oro-nii's favorites as well, the_ sen'eijashu_, which allowed him to summon snakes wrapped around his wrist, and use them to entangle or attack foes. His tutor had also taught him a basic jutsu from each element, and determined his elemental affinity as wind. Not to mention his standfast favorite technique, the first Oro-nii had taught him, the _kage bunshin_.

While his real body worked on the muscle and chakra building exercises, groups of clones sat around reading, or trying to focus his elemental affinity into something useable, or sparring with each other, or practicing their stealth, or simply working on chakra control. It was a highly intensive regimen, but he'd quickly grown used to it.

So now he had finished his exercises, he began working on something he'd decided to train for on his own. Speed. He'd realized recently that, although he was large and strong for someone of his age, he was still weak and small compared to adults. He could partially negate this disadvantage by being faster than them. If he was moving quickly when he hit, they'd be hurt a lot worse than if he'd simply been standing still.

Arashi's speed training was simple. He ran in the mountains near the base, as fast as he could, until he collapsed from exhaustion. He then dragged himself home. The next day, he would do the same thing again, but this time with a little more weight added. It had been fun, the first few times, seeing new scenery, strange plants and animals, and breathing peculiarly thin air. But now, after almost six weeks of the training, he was getting bored of it.

Which fed back into the first problem. Training with no variety was boring, boring, boring. He'd begged Oro-nii to let him go out and explore, maybe wipe out a few small bandit groups, but had been shot down every time. It was for his own good, apparently. Oro-nii didn't want him risking his life just from boredom. It had taken an inordinate amount of wrangling just to be allowed out for his runs, and they were through a completely unpopulated area.

Arashi couldn't go against what Oro-nii said. Sure, he could interpret his mentor's instructions creatively, allowing him to do things that, perhaps, the Sannin didn't want him to, but Arashi could never outright disobey his benefactor. It sometimes crossed his mind, but he always dismissed it as a bad idea. He didn't want to disappoint Oro-nii. A disappointed Oro-nii was far worse than an angry Oro-nii, and Arashi had no desire to see either. He'd see both if he did disobey.

So he waited. He knew that Oro-nii would need to leave the base soon, for one reason or another, and he'd promised to take Arashi with him.

**oXoXoXo**

Three days later, as he and Oro-nii approached the Village Hidden in the Mist, Arashi was understandably excited. He'd never been this close to another Hidden Village before, and it was his first real trip outside the base for months. He was finding it hard to maintain his composure and keep pretending to be the peasant child he was supposed to be. It was a good job that his face was well hidden beneath the broad, conical straw hat he was wearing. Which is why he was so disappointed by Oro-nii's next words.

"I need you to take a look around this area, Ara-chan, while I go on into the Hidden Village." He said, resting a hand on his young charge's shoulder. Before Arashi could object, Orochimaru continued, "My intelligence reports suggested that the recent attack against Mist was carried out by a rogue group based in this area. The ninja in the village have been so busy repairing the damage that they haven't had time to mount a thorough search. Look for the base."

With that, he was gone, heavy cloak swaying slightly in the wind as he strode off in the direction of the Hidden Village. Arashi sighed. He'd been looking forward to seeing Mist, but could understand why Oro-nii had left him in charge of the search, for his chakra reserves allowed him to cover a far greater area in far less time than any other ninja he knew. He could produce _kage bunshin _in vast numbers, and that was what was needed, the brute force approach. For all that Oro-nii loved his tricks and mind games, and for all that the snake sannin had tried to impress these skills onto Arashi, he still preferred to bulldoze through a problem rather than solve it. It was just so much more fun that way.

It took him several hours, several hundred clones, and a large amount of frustration, but eventually he found a cave that seemed interesting. It had been cleverly hidden, but his cunning plan of leaving his clones wandering aimlessly through the forest had paid off. One of them had lost concentration when they spotted a pretty butterfly, tripped over a rock, and tumbled straight through the brush concealing the entrance. The clone proceeded to dispel itself, and Arashi rushed over to examine the area in person.

The entrance to the cave was low and narrow, and the carefully arranged bushes and shrubs around it had completely concealed it from sight. There were a few telltale signs that it had been in recent human use, however – there were a couple of almost-faded footprints, a few loose threads, and a single button in the immediate vicinity. However, there were no signs of anyone coming or going in the past week or so. Arashi decided it was safe enough to go inside, so long as he kept quiet and sneaky.

Inside, the cave was surprisingly well-lit. There were a number of thin cracks in the dark grey rock walls and ceiling, many of which let in shafts of waning sunlight without permitting a view to the outside. The walls and floor were slick with water, however, and splotches of moss and lichen were liberally spread across the walls. Arashi was glad of the light, as without it he suspected he would have slipped upon first entering the cave. As it was, he could move easily along the long tunnel so long as he used a small amount of chakra to stick himself to the floor.

_Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat_

That noise was odd, but sounded familiar, though he couldn't put his finger on it. Advancing along the tunnel, Arashi cautiously slipped a kunai into each hand. He was nearing the first corner, and didn't want to be unarmed if there was a nasty surprise waiting for him. A quick hand seal later, and one of his clones barreled around the bend, running along the wall at head height. Disappointingly, there was nothing particularly interesting there. No trap, no scary animals, nothing. Arashi rolled his eyes, sighed, and continued on, repeating the process at each corner he came to.

_Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat_

After only a couple more of these turns, he reached what seemed to be the main chamber of this hideout. It certainly had to be the source of the noise, because he couldn't see any tunnel mouths opening into the chamber save the one he was crouched in. He carefully studied the room. It was quite large, probably fifty feet to a side, and roughly square, with a number of simple sleeping bags and worn mattresses scattered haphazardly around the area, enough for a significant number of people. In the centre of the room was a shallow pit filled with charred wood, obviously where the inhabitants had lit their fires. Long tables with mismatched chairs pushed up against them lay around three edges of the room, and a shadowy alcove occupied the centre of the fourth wall, the one opposite Arashi.

_Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat_

That noise was definitely louder in this room. It seemed to be coming from the dark hole in the opposite wall, so Arashi cautiously made his way around the sides of the room until he came to the very edge of the alcove. He carefully peered around the corner, exposing a minimum of his head, and was bemused by what he saw. A white-haired boy, probably not much older than himself, was sitting in a cage. The cage, suspended off the ground and bolted to the wall, was scarcely bigger than the boy, and had bars heavy enough to hold an elephant at bay.

As Arashi watched, the boy slowly ran a thin, white stick across the bars of the cage, staring blankly into space all the while. Well, now he knew where the noise was coming from. He pulled his head back around the corner.

"Hey there, kid, why're ya stuck in that cage?" He asked, tactful as ever.

There was a moment of silence, and then a toneless voice responded. "Father says I'm evil. Says I can't be out of the cage. Monsters have to stay in their cages, he says."

"Maaa, your dad sounds like a nasty guy. Why's he call ya a monster?"

"Says I'm cursed. Says my blood is evil. Says what I can do is proof."

"Hah, what can ya do that's so scary? Betcha it ain't that bad."

"He said it's a bloodline limit. That being able to use it makes me an animal. I'm not human."

At this, Arashi grinned. _Oro-nii will be pleased with this, _he thought to himself. "Well, my Oro-nii likes folks with bloodline limits. Thinks they're real useful."

"You're lying. No-one likes those with bloodline limits."

Arashi sighed. "Well, if ya don't meet him, how're ya gonna know?"

Silence was the only reply, and then the stick clattered slowly across the bars again. "I want to see you."

Arashi considered his options. He could go round the corner and greet the boy, who seemed distinctly non-threatening, or he could wait for Oro-nii to get here first. Well, he'd never been one for the indirect approach.

"Alright, I'm coming now." He responded.

He rounded the corner, taking the opportunity to examine the other boy in closer detail. Now that he could see the other boy's face clearly, he could see that there were two red dots just above his eyebrows. _Tattoos? Birthmarks?_ Arashi wondered idly. The boy was dressed in filthy, patched clothes that looked two sizes too big for him. Upon closer inspection, the stick in the boy's hands didn't look very stick-like at all. Well, he could figure that out later.

"Yo! My name's Arashi, what's yours?" He exclaimed, waving as he moved closer to the cage.

"My name is … Kimimaro. Kaguya Kimimaro. Keep back. Father says I can't be trusted near people."

"Hah! Ya don't look scary to me, Kimi-chan. More like hungry." Arashi replied, walking right up to the bars of the cage. He was no more than a foot from Kimimaro's face. "Want some food? I got some in my pack."

The boy observed him silently for almost a minute, hooded eyes boring into his own, before slowly nodding. A few moments later, Arashi was handing him a ration bar, before taking one for himself. The bars were one of Oro-nii's most practical inventions. Sure, there were other ration bars out there, but none of them tasted good like this one did. In Arashi's opinion, that alone made it worthwhile carrying a few.

The boys chewed in silence for a few minutes, Arashi sitting on his pack, before he decided to start up the conversation again. Not because he was bored, or because he was genetically incapable of being quiet near other people, but because he wanted to try and get Kimimaro to trust him some more. The first two reasons were just mitigating factors, that was all.

"So, ya want out of that cage, Kimi-chan?" Arashi asked.

The boy gave him a faintly bemused glance. _Seems like he's out of his depth, _thought Arashi. "Well, ya can't meet Oro-nii if I don't get you out of here, can ya?"

"I … I suppose I would like to be free. But father said…" Kimimaro was cut off before he could finish the sentence.

"Well, the way I see it, we been sitting here a good ten minutes and you ain't tried to kill me yet. That's pretty clear-cut proof to me, Kimi-chan, that ya ain't a danger 'less you want to be. Gimme a couple minutes and I can have ya outta there."

Kimimaro considered this for a moment. For a boy who'd hardly been allowed to think for himself, a decision like this was a truly difficult choice.

"Do it."

Within the minute, Arashi had picked the lock on the cage and swung open the door. He looked expectantly at Kimimaro, who was still sitting in the cage, his face the picture of stunned delight.

"How's it feel to be free, Kimi-chan?"

There was a pause as the words filtered into the boy's head.

"Novel." He responded dryly.

Arashi chuckled. At least the kid had a sense of humour. "You want to get outta the cage any time soon, or you just gonna enjoy the view?"

Kimimaro blushed slightly. "I … seem to be having trouble moving my legs. Could you … help me down?"

Arashi grinned and leaned into the cage, slipping one hand under the boy's knees and the other around his shoulders, then lifted him clear. He swung around and set the boy down on the pack that was still lying on the floor.

"Ya need to spend a little while gettin' ya legs working again. Don't worry 'bout it, we got time. While we wait, can ya show me ya bloodlimit?"

The boy looked dubious, but Arashi's hopeful smile seemed to convince him. "Alright. Just … don't be scared, please?" He said, worry creasing his face.

Arashi nodded, and then gasped in amazement as Kimimaro's wrist split open and a white sliver forced its way out. Kimimaro took a firm hold on the bone and pulled, drawing a vicious spike from his arm. The tear in his wrist closed again, and he handed the sliver to Arashi, gesturing for him to inspect it. Arashi ran his hand over the spike, then took an end in each hand and tried to bend it. Nothing.

"Wow. That's so cool! Does it hurt?"

Kimimaro shook his head. "The bone grows back instantly, and there's no pain."

"Well, I think Oro-nii will be really impressed! C'mon, we'll go wait for him. Can ya walk yet, or d'ya want me to give ya a hand?"

Kimimaro flexed his feet, then bent his knees once or twice, then placed his hands on the floor on either side of him. He bought his feet underneath him, and with a great deal of effort forced himself to his feet. He stood, swaying slightly, then leaned against the wall, obviously exhausted.

Arashi formed a single seal, and two clones appeared. Each one slipped one of Kimimaro's arms over its shoulder, and the boy gave Arashi a relieved smile. Together, they made their way slowly out of the hidden base, Arashi scouting ahead in the tunnel with more clones, Kimimaro taking the occasional step on his own, but mostly being carried by the clones.

It took them over an hour to get to the rendezvous point that Oro-nii had specified, but Arashi wasn't worried. He'd left a few clones scattered about the area to warn him if anyone approached, and knew that no-one was in the vicinity. Orochimaru arrived five minutes after the two boys, and was greeted by an exuberant Arashi.

"Oro-nii, Oro-nii, you'll never guess who I found!"


	6. Death and Taxes

**AN: First thing, changed the rating because of the violence in the second half of this chapter. It isn't too graphic, but it doesn't avoid the gore either. Oh, and if you've been holding any illusions about Arashi still being basically nice, then sorry, but you might be quite disappointed.**

**Alright, time to answer a few questions.**

**KaliAnn: Nope, no romantic entanglements in this fic. Arashi's gonna be too young and too messed up in the head.**

**Vaanarash: As far as I'm aware, Kimimaro is the only one in his clan actually able to use his bloodline, which is why he was treated the way he was. If that's not the case, then sorry ****.**

**Seimika: I was planning on having Kimimaro not get sick. I like the character, so want to get more use out of him, and he'd be really dull if all he did was lie there comatose :P. In terms of Arashi being modified, well, just read this chapter. It isn't extreme or particularly dangerous, but it's there.**

**Also, nice to see people liked the little interlude. Tell me if you want more like it, I enjoyed writing it but wasn't sure whether it fitted into the story well.**

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**Death and Taxes**

Arashi smiled in satisfaction as he finished balancing the last column of numbers. He'd been stuck on accounting duty for the past month now, ever since Oro-nii had found out he had a knack for it. He was dreadful with numbers in any other circumstance, and couldn't fill in paperwork to save his life, but accounting, a strange blend of the two disciplines, came so easily to him that the other ninja in the office though Oro-nii had been rummaging about inside Arashi's skull. Arashi was just surprised other people found it so difficult.

Arashi's work in the office was augmented by a second, almost as relevant asset; he could make enough copies of himself to run the entire department on his own. Seeing as this meant balancing the books for what was, in practice if not officially, an entire Hidden Village, by himself, he was probably the most valued member in the entire paperwork office.

Not bad for someone who was only nine years old.

Of course, there was a reason that Arashi was stuck doing paperwork, beyond the fact that he was good at it. He was learning 'vital ninja skills', as Oro-nii put it. Or, in other words, being kept out from under the Sannin's feet. Arashi didn't mind, as he knew that the campaign to 'convince' the Daimyo of the Land of Rice to acknowledge Orochimaru's ninja as his country's Hidden Village. The Daimyo had proven too obstinate to approach diplomatically, and so the newly-dubbed Sound ninja were waging a covert, but very successful, war against the Daimyo's forces. Arashi wanted to join in the fight, but Oro-nii had said that he was being saved for something special.

Arashi didn't doubt this; in fact, Orochimaru's actions over the past week had only strengthened the notion. Firstly, his mentor had personally performed a few minor surgeries on him, turning his over-large canines from simple inconveniences into actual weapons. Venom glands had been implanted above both his top canines, and the teeth had been adapted to allow the poison to be injected into a bitten foe. Arashi now had a nasty surprise for anyone who got too close. He could only kill with it a couple of times a day, but it was better than being unarmed at that range, and Oro-nii had promised that his venom capacity would increase as he got older and grew bigger.

The biggest sign, however, was when Oro-nii showed him the survivors of his next generation of ninja trainees. Apparently, there had originally been over a hundred of the child-soldiers, but the training, their deployment as front-line troops in the war, and the odd argument turned murderous, had cut their numbers down to less than twenty. Those left looked war-torn, bitter, and haunted. Arashi liked the look. He didn't think much of most of them, though he was willing to withhold judgment until he saw them fight. Not that he held high hopes for their survival in any case, but it might be entertaining to watch them struggle in vain before they expired pitifully. Of course, the children he'd been shown were only the elite – those who had a chance of becoming jounin or above. The weaker trainees were all still out in the field with the rest of Orochimaru's army.

Arashi's time spent in the office did not mean that he had halted his other training; on the contrary, it had become ever more intense since he'd discovered Kimimaro. The other boy had been nowhere near his level when they started their sparring, but was now a deadly foe in close combat. They sparred every day, often injuring each other so badly that one or the other passed out from blood loss, but were always patched up and ready to go again within a matter of hours. Say what you liked about Orochimaru, but he could train some of the best medic-nins on the planet. A (un)healthy curiosity in human anatomy, and its reactions to various sources of trauma, had left the man with a vast knowledge that could be used for healing as well as death. His obsessive research into elongating his own lifespan also led him to delve deep into the medical arts, both mundane and chakra-based. The final key to training master medics was not Orochimaru at all, but the spy he had suborned from Sasori, the grey-haired Kabuto, who was, himself, a master of medical ninjutsu. Combine all these elements and use them in an intensive training course for jounin with excellent chakra control, and you quickly got a highly skilled medical corps.

Arashi had not neglected this area of training himself – he had picked up the basic healing jutsu, and had managed to pester Kabuto into teaching him how to make a chakra scalpel. He wasn't very good at healing, as his chakra control was too poor, but he knew enough to let him administer more than the usual first aid. The chakra scalpel made for a good surprise weapon as well, as several of the more arrogant young ninja on the base had learned to their detriment. Not that the lesson stayed very long, Arashi's victims usually spent what little time they had left frantically trying to stem the blood spurting from severed arteries.

All in all, it was a good thing that Orochimaru called him in to give him the special mission he'd been promised. Arashi had been getting antsy as he waited, and an antsy Arashi led to very nervous (not to mention short-lived) genin.

The mission itself was fairly simple: the attack on the capital city of the Land of Rice was going to take place within 48 hours, and Arashi and Kimimaro had to get over the walls and start sowing havoc just before the main attack was launched. With any luck, they would be able to cause some serious confusion and give the main body of the army a better chance to break in. Of course, Orochimaru could simply stroll into the Daimyo's palace, grab the man by the throat, and threaten him until he agreed to grant legitimacy to the Sound ninja, but the budding Hidden Village had to make a point. They had to make sure that the populace knew who was in charge, and a full on, flashy, ostentatious display was what they needed.

Arashi loved flashy, ostentatious displays of power. He didn't get to use his biggest advantages – his immense chakra and incomparable stamina – as often as he would have liked. However, once he and Kimimaro got over the wall, he could cut loose with everything he had without worrying about causing problems. Well, causing problems for his side. He was rather counting on the enemy being inconvenienced by his actions.

Arashi and Kimimaro were not the only team going in early. There were a half-dozen other groups, all of them better-than-average at stealth, and all of them possessing very loud, very obvious jutsu. It was going to be the most fun Arashi had been allowed since that time he'd set up the trap for a particularly uppity chuunin. It had involved said chuunin's apartment, a lot of honey, three nests of fire ants, a devious replumbing of all the taps to provide sulphuric acid instead of water, and fifteen cameras so he could film every moment of it. Orochimaru had been so proud of him when he showed him the video.

Head filled with such pleasant thoughts, Arashi left the briefing to collect the gear he would need, wondering idly whether he could ever carry too many explosive tags…

**oXoXoXo**

Barely four hours later, Arashi found himself in front of Orochimaru once more.

"Ara-chan, I have something very special for you. I have been waiting for the right time to give you this gift, and now seems perfect." Orochimaru said. "Please come closer."

Arashi did as he was told, walking forwards until he was barely a foot from his surrogate father, who smiled down at him, then reached inside his robes. He pulled out something metal mounted on a length of mottled grey cloth. A forehead protector.

"You are far more advanced than most of the pitiful fools they call genin in the other Hidden Villages. It is time to take your place as a true ninja of the Hidden Sound." Orochimaru said solemnly.

Arashi was practically vibrating on the spot, he was so excited. He was finally being given a proper rank! It was strange how important this was for him, he knew he was better than most genin already, but in a way this was Orochimaru's first true acknowledgement of his powers.

The Sannin turned the forehead protector around so that Arashi could see what was engraved on it. At first glance, it seemed like a normal Sound insignia, but upon closer inspection it was revealed to be a snake, twisted and knotted into the form of the musical note. It was an intricate piece of craftsmanship, enough that it even impressed Arashi, who usually had no time for anything other than the practical. But this was beauty. Not just the workmanship. Not even the workmanship, perhaps. It could have been scratched onto a piece of pig iron with a kunai for all he cared. No, it was what it represented that made it beautiful. It was a sign of Oro-nii's faith in him. It was a sign that he was finally, at last, recognized as a true ninja by his teacher.

He couldn't help himself. He burst into a massive smile and pumped his fist in the air, cheering wildly, jumping up and down all the while.

Orochimaru smiled indulgently, slipping the kunai he'd held hidden behind his back into its hiding place once more. If Arashi had started crying, or tried to hug him, or shown any similar sign of weakness, he would have cut his losses and killed the boy there. This had been the tipping point. The boy had been hardened, shaped, and sharpened, and now it was time to temper him in the blood of the natives of the Land of Rice.

Still smiling, he knelt before Arashi and carefully tied the forehead protector to the young ninja's head, resting the plate directly across his forehead, the insignia in plain sight.

"Now, go get your battle gear on, Ara-chan. You and Kimimaro are leaving in eight hours."

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi and Kimimaro were both crouched at the foot of a small, scraggly tree. It was some of the only cover for hundreds of metres around them, and gave them a good view of the walled city before them. Night had just fallen, and the walls were lit up with hundreds of torches, some moving as their carriers patrolled the ramparts, some stationary, just providing illumination. The wall was a good forty feet high, the ramparts tipped with vicious spikes, and there was no section left unobserved for more than a second. In other words, the two young ninja could infiltrate though the pathetic defenses in their sleep. Arashi would have laughed at how the soldiers seemed to think that a wall was any defense against an army of ninja, but it would have given his position away, so he contented himself with a tight grin.

Both boys were dressed in standard Sound battle fatigues; a long sleeved shirt and three-quarter-length trousers, both a dark, mottled grey. Their faces had been covered in camouflage paint to match their fatigues, and their forehead protector cloths had been unfolded to cover their hair. Their feet and calves were wrapped in similar-hued bandages, with black ninja sandals over that. Underneath this they wore full-body armour mesh. Arashi finished his outfit off with a pair of dark grey fingerless leather gloves, matte black metal studs covering each knuckle, and a number of bandoliers slung around his torso, holding all sorts of devious little ninja tools, a large, bulky backpack, and finally kunai and senbon holsters strapped to his right leg and left bicep. Kimimaro, on the other hand, simply had a wide length of black cloth wrapped around his midsection as a belt, inside which were concealed a few explosive tags, smoke bombs and flash bombs. He didn't bother with any of the traditional ninja tools, as his body could make all of them or better. All in all, they blended into the darkness like a pair of particularly lethal shadows.

With a silent hand signal, Arashi sent the two of them sprinting across the hundred metres between the wall and the tree. It took them all of two seconds, and a further half second had them over the wall and into the city itself. They were technically half an hour ahead of schedule, but Arashi had a spectacular show planned to start off the night's entertainments. There was a reason he had picked up some of the more conventional incendiaries and stuffed his backpack full of them. Oro-nii didn't know about his plan, or, rather, had not been told about the plan. He had probably figured it out the moment Arashi had withdrawn his tools from the armoury, but had not objected, and so Arashi felt he had been given carte blanche.

From their concealment in the shadows at the base of the wall, they scaled to the rooftops of the city and got their first proper look at the place. Arashi had never seen so many buildings packed so closely together, and was practically salivating at the thought of how many people that meant were present. Oro-nii had a nice technical term for this sort of situation, calling it a 'target rich environment'. Arashi just called it heaven.

While he was pontificating, he and Kimimaro moved across the rooftops, pausing every so often to plant incendiary bombs with explosive tag triggers. Arashi attuned all the tags to himself, so that he could set them all off at once. It would be quite the rude wake up call. He could practically smell the burning flesh already, and it was making him impatient. He had to stick with the plan though. A mistake at this point would not be disastrous, but it would cause problems. So he kept his cool, kept padding across the rooftops and placing his bombs carefully.

They had five minutes left before they ran into trouble. A patrol was making its way across the rooftops, something which hadn't been mentioned in the scouting report on the city. Supressing a snarl, Arashi gestured to Kimimaro, who nodded his agreement, and they both dropped off the nearest edge, clinging to the eaves of the building and waiting for the patrol to pass by. There was little chance that their explosives would be noticed in this section, as they had lowered all of the bombs down the chimneys of the nearby houses using a length of ninja wire, but the soldiers were an unacceptable risk. They couldn't be left to cause difficulties later.

The two child-ninja waited for the last man in the six-strong patrol to pass them, then slid back onto the rooftop on silent feet. Vicious bone swords slid from both of Kimimaro's palms, and he let them hang loosely at his side, the tips scant centimeters from the roof tiles. Arashi drew a nastily hooked kunai into his right hand, forming his _kage bunshin_ seal with his left, and suddenly there were ten of him, all with a handful of deadly steel.

It was over in moments. Arashi's clones teamed up, two to a soldier, sinking their blades into lungs and spines, dropping the first four men before they even noticed they were dead. He didn't have time to take the last two, as Kimimaro had ghosted across the tiles and impaled both of them with a single, gracefully fluid move. The bodies were carefully lowered, so as to make no noise, and then it was a mad dash to finish placing the last few explosives and get to a safe vantage point. They made it with fifteen seconds to spare.

A high pitched, piecing whistle announced the firing of the signal flare, followed by a teeth-rattling explosion which lit the skies for miles around. Say what you wanted about Orochimaru, but he knew how to send a signal that a blind deaf man would notice. Arashi counted softly under his breath as the light faded from the sky, waiting three long seconds after it was finally dark again before making a right-handed seal and lighting up the night once more.

Next to him, Kimimaro covered his mouth with his sleeve and giggled helplessly as he saw what Arashi had done with the bombs. They spelt out a word, one that would be visible from anywhere on the walls and anywhere in the Daimyo's palace.

They spelt out "BOO".

Arashi was so distracted by the crackling flames and screams of death, anguish and despair that he almost didn't notice the approaching foes. He was panting heavily, the exhilaration of pulling off his biggest and deadliest prank yet filling his veins with a giddy adrenaline high. He moved at the very last possible moment, only just managing to avoid a strike which would have separated his arm from his body had it connected.

Landing lightly, he took a half second to observe his foes. There were four of them, each wearing a forehead protector with a slash though it. Missing-nin, hired by the Daimyo for protection, most likely. Two of them were currently engaged in a furious blade-to-bone battle against Kimimaro, while the remaining two circled out to try and pincer Arashi.

Smirking, he dropped into the fighting stance for Orochimaru's specialized taijutsu form. Designed to cripple with pain and redirect force rather than to immediately kill, it was perfect for smaller combatants like Arashi. He kept both opponents in view, his eyes fixed on one while his peripheral vision allowed him to keep an eye on the other. He was, frankly, shocked when they both simply charged, their kunai leading the way. They hadn't even bothered to throw at him. Idiots. Worse for them, they were going to reach him at different times.

Arashi was already turning as the first enemy stabbed for him. His hands lashed out, one grabbing the man's own hand, holding it tight around the kunai, and the other found the man's elbow. Arashi used their combined momentum to keep the man moving, slamming him full force into his other attacker, sending them both sprawling to the floor. Arashi sneered disdainfully at the tangled heap of ninja, then started making hand signs as they struggled to untangle themselves from each other, forcing chakra into his lungs as he did so. He inhaled the whole time, then, as he formed the last seal, exhaled in a single sharp hiss. A violent gust of wind blasted the two from the rooftop. It had certainly killed one, he'd heard the snap of the man's neck as it clipped the edge of the building, but the second had kept his wits and performed a _kawarimi_, reappearing right behind Arashi and lashing out with his kunai.

Arashi rolled forwards, taking a shallow cut across his cheek as he did so. A split second later and he would have lost an eye, or even been outright killed. This was getting fun. He drew a kunai into his right hand, grabbing a length of wire into his left at the same moment. A quick glance showed that Kimimaro was holding his own, but starting to struggle, his left and right hands weaving separate defensive patterns as he fended off his two attackers.

"Plan 3!" Bellowed Arashi, hands flashing through seals once more.

With a puff of smoke that he usually deliberately left out of the technique, he swapped places with Kimimaro, the smoke concealing the swap for a vital half-moment. There was a flicker of confusion on all three surviving foe's faces, which was more than enough to give Kimimaro the time to dispatch the ninja Arashi had just been fighting, both bone swords sliding up through the man's ribcage, puncturing both lungs and then exploding through his shoulders in a spray of blood and tissue. Kimimro didn't bother to pull his blades free, he simply pulled new ones from his arms and moved to join Arashi, who had been having significantly more trouble holding off the two uninjured ninja.

As one of his opponents broke off to engage Kimimro again, Arashi swept low, his left hand hissing out to whip some wire around their feet. Two hand seals later and lightning flowed down the wire, making the ninja jump and drop her kunai, her hair standing from her head in a nimbus.

However, this allowed the other missing-nin to land a solid blow, sinking his kunai into Arashi's forearm up to the hilt, driving through to pin the limb to the roof tiles. Arashi snarled in pain and frustration, jerking madly at the arm to try and free it. Meanwhile, the enemy ninja drew another two blades, slowly, as though savoring the moment. This act of stupidity proved fatal as Arashi finished the jutsu he had been forming with his free hand and punched forwards with it, shadowy, half-real snakes slithering from his wrist to wrap around the man, holding him fast. A vicious snarl on his face, Arashi slowly lifted the man into the air, then shook him about like a rag doll, hissing and spitting as he did so, until a touch on his shoulder bought him back to his senses.

"Arashi. We have beaten them. I believe that this one," Kimimaro gestured at the blood-sodden, torn and mangled piece of meat which had, a minute previously, been a ninja. "Is dead. Let me free you."

With a small grunt of effort, he pulled the kunai free, then helped Arashi to his feet. The young jinchuuriki spent a few moments running his right hand, which was now covered in green-glowing chakra, over the wound, healing the worst of the damage and leaving him functional again.

It had only been ten minutes since the start of the fight, and there were already breaches in the city walls in three different places.

"Time to kill some civilians. I think a little easy blood might help to sooth the pain." Snarled Arashi.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi finished the jutsu for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, wind chakra focused on the tips of his outstretched fingers, arms held wide. He swept his arms forwards in a massive arc, sending two blades of wind down the street, one at knee height and one at throat height. He never missed a step as he did so, walking forwards purposefully. The blades of wind scythed through the fleeing civilians, cutting down a score of women, men and children. He was laughing, peals of innocent, childish giggles rising through the screams, the explosions, the roaring fires.

Behind him lay countless more corpses, some sliced with the wind jutsu, some cut down with his blades, others incinerated by a flame jutsu. The buildings were in shreds, and the road was torn and mangled. There was a series of soft thuds and another half-dozen civilians fell, killed by Kimimaro's thrown fingerbones. The boy walked to his side and a few feet behind him, picking off any who managed to survive the relentless jutsu onslaught and occasionally taking potshots.

In front of him, a few of the trainee Sound ninja were standing on the rooftops and picking off civilians as he herded them forwards.

"WOOT! HEADSHOT! That's gotta be triple points!" Hollered one. He was holding a bow almost as long as he was tall, and was pinning people to the walls with the oversized arrows.

Another two darted through the crowd, so close to each other that they almost seemed to be one person at times, lashing out with blades to keep the mob terrified and moving, killing by degrees, letting their targets bleed out or crippling them so they were trampled to death under their fleeing compatriots. Arashi liked their style.

A fourth was sitting nonchalantly on the highest point of a fallen building, a flute held to her lips. The tune she played was odd, disjointed, jarring to the ears, and, to the civilians, potentially fatal. Some of them were twitching and spasming, blood running from their ears, noses and mouths as they collapsed.

There were a few others, launching the odd low-ranked jutsu into the crowd, or peppering them with projectile weapons, but none of them stood out, and Arashi suspected they were the regular cannon fodder, those who would never achieve beyond chuunin, and that was if they were lucky.

Arashi's laughter continued, unabated. It was only half at the slaughter. The other half was at the fact that, if the crowd decided to leave this street and flee down side streets and alleyways, the ninja would not pursue them. Their job was to clear the main thoroughfare leading to the Daimyo's palace, and to do so in such a way as to make their intentions clear. Arashi rather thought they had, but he liked to err on the side of caution.

Half a mile behind him, Orochimaru and his entourage of jounin strolled casually along the blood-stained highway. Fifteen minutes previous, Orochimaru had walked up to the main city gates, spent half a minute calmly forming seals, and then blasted them clean off their hinges with a massive blast of wind.

The group of high-ranked ninja was deliberately keeping the exact pace needed to get them to the steps of the Daimyo's palace the moment the crowd was finally dealt with. It wouldn't be long now. Orochimaru licked his lips in anticipation.

**oXoXoXo**

"So, Daimyo-chan, have you given any further thought to my generous offer?" Orochimaru sneered. He was sitting seiza with a cup of green tea cupped in his hands. Opposite him, the Daimyo was held, feet off the floor, by two large, burly jounin.

"O-o-orochimaru-sama, please, stop this mindless slaughter and I will do whatever you ask." The man stuttered, head bowed in shame.

Orochimaru seemed to consider it for a moment, then turned to Arashi, who was standing behind and to the left of him. "What do you think, Ara-chan?"

"Make him apologize first. I'd want to see him flat before ya, beggin' for his life, before ya stop punishing his people." Arashi said flatly. He was drenched in blood, covered from head to foot, and it was beginning to dry, which was making him sticky. This, needless to say, was not improving his already dark mood.

"Fufufu. I think my young friend has a point," Orochimaru said, voice a quirk of his eyebrow he ordered the Daimyo thrown to the floor in front of him. "Well? Get groveling, dog."

The defeated man, tears streaking his face, snot bubbling from one nose, and expensive robes soiled with his own urine, prostrated himself before the Sannin, face pressed to the floor.

"I … I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! Please! Please stop!" He sobbed.

Orochimaru gave him a cold look. "Is that the best you can do?"

He nodded to Arashi, who smirked and motioned with his right hand. A struggling, screaming woman was bought into the room and forced to her knees right in front of the Daimyo, who could only watch in horror at what was unfolding.

"Ya daughter, so I'm told?" Arashi said, his hand trailing gently along the young woman's face, leaving a faint, bloody trail in its wake.

And then there was a knife in his other hand, and in one smooth motion he had slit her throat from ear to ear. The Daimyo's screams for mercy stopped, and there was an eerie silence as the woman's blood misted down over her father's prone form.

"P'haps ya could do better next time, eh?" Said Arashi, breaking the silence with a cheeky grin.

Orochimaru's lips twisted upwards into a vicious smile to match his student's.

**oXoXoXo**

The Daimyo was finally released two days later, after his entire family had been killed in front of him, one at a time. It was the worst torture Orochimaru could come up with, as the Daimyo had to be physically operational for a while longer to confirm the Hidden Sound's legitimacy.

Orochimaru got his Hidden Village. Arashi got his slaughter. The Daimyo got a Hidden Village of the most evil ninja on the continent. Somehow, he felt he'd get the raw end of the deal.

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**AN2: OK, just to pre-empt a couple of questions - yes, that was Tayuya, Kidoumaru, Sakon and Ukon. I deliberately didn't mention Jiroubou, you'll find out why next chapter.**

**Arashi may have seemed either too weak or too powerful in this. Remember that this is his first real, non-staged battle. The ninja he fought against were high-genin level, and got the drop on Arashi, not the other way round, and were fighting in a restricted area. I want Arashi to be a very rounded character, powers wise - not the best in any one area, but good at everything, and with a large jutsu repertoire. I had the ninja slaughtering civilians like they weren't even there because, to me, the civilians in the Naruto world have no chance against even an academy student. But I want your opinions on this, so please give them.**

**So, please, tell me what you thought of this chapter, hope you liked it**


	7. A Sound Idea

**AN: WARNING, STRONG LANGUAGE IN THIS CHAPTER.**

**First things first, check out the quick sketch of Arashi in ninja mode as he will be at around 13 that I've linked in my profile. It isn't great, but should give you an idea of what he'll look like.**

**Secondly, thanks for the reviews, I'm glad you're all enjoying it. I'm trying to keep Arashi's power level believable – he's not had any real combat experience yet, and is bad at teamwork, but should be improving over the next few chapters.**

**Finally, check out my drabble collection – it's only one chapter so far, but I enjoyed doing it, so I might do one for Arashi next, it helps me write my story chapters if I loosen up a little by changing things up every so often.**

**This is also something of an interim chapter – one which bridges the first "arc" of the story into the next one, which starts properly next chapter.**

**Oh, and apologies for the chapter title, I just couldn't help myself.**

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**A Sound Idea**

Arashi turned in the air, orienting himself so that he landed lightly on the ceiling, sticking his feet there with chakra to leave his hands free. His left hand sent a constant stream of senbon at his opponents, while his right dipped into his pouch to pull out his sealing scroll. With a flourish, he unfurled it, slapped his hand lightly against the seal, and then leapt away as a number of vicious traps dropped from it, most consisting of unpleasant combinations of explosive notes and throwing weapons.

His favorite trap had to be what he nicknamed the Urchin, which was a wad of explosive notes with senbon stuck into them at every conceivable angle, making something which looked very similar to it's namesake. It was also quite, quite nasty. The only problem with it was how long the thing took to put together, but it was worth it, in his opinion.

Especially when it did exactly what it was currently doing – dropping right into the middle of a group of enemies. A single seal detonated it, sending razor-sharp pieces of metal scything through his opponents, all of whom disappeared with a puff of smoke.

He sighed. This training was all well and good, but he was ten years old, and fully capable of being sent out on missions. Kimimaro was assigned missions, as were Oro-nii's side project, whose official title was the Sound Four. Arashi preferred to refer to them as The Meat Shields. That was all they were good for, after all. Kimimaro had taken all four of them at once, and Arashi was strictly banned from interacting with them at all, in case he had a fit of pique and murdered one or two of them. This was a shame, as he thought he'd rather get along with three of them, though the fourth member was apparently a fool, with unjustified confidence in his own abilities. Arashi trusted Kimimaro's judgment in these things, and was perfectly happy to let the bone-user deal with the egos of the four up-and-coming Sound ninja.

This didn't stop him from wanting to do missions, even if he had to go with every other ninja in the Hidden Village. He knew Oro-nii was didn't want him to get captured if a mission went wrong, since he knew most of the Snake Sannin's secrets, but he was no use if he was sat in the base all the time, never getting any real experience or practice. Fighting his own clones was getting him nowhere fast, and no-one below Jounin rank was willing to teach him, with all the Jounin also busy on missions. It was fair enough – a new Hidden Village needed all the money and publicity it could get, and Sound was already getting a reputation as somewhere willing to do any job if the price was right. Some of the stories floating around the mess halls were so exciting that Arashi had to re-enact them in one of the larger training halls, reshaping it to the described scenery and using his clones to fill in the parts of everyone else. It still didn't give him the thrill his first mission had, and he was beginning to get very bored.

This had resulted in another wave of his vicious pranking. He had not managed to kill anyone this time, but one of his most inventive pranks had left a promising young Genin – Bosu? Tosu? Something like that – minus his right forearm, right eye, and about three-quarters of his skin. He was fairly disappointed that the boy had survived, as he'd meant for the trap to dismember the Genin in a particularly messy way. Well, at least now he would think twice before mouthing off to Arashi again.

Arashi sighed. Time to finish up in this training room, he had elocution lessons to get to. Elocution lessons for the next four hours. He briefly considered stabbing himself in the eye, but that hadn't got him out of the lesson the first time he tried it, so he saw no reason why it would work this time. Best to get it over with then…

**oXoXoXo**

It took Kimimaro the best part of the rest of the week to finish his mission, and when he returned to the base the first person there to meet him was Arashi, who had managed to find out when the bone-user was due back.

"Yo, Kimi-chan, how'd it go?"

"Fairly well, Arashi. Do you know where Orochimaru-sama is? I must deliver my report."

"Sure! Follow me."

"Arashi, I do not mean to be rude, but do you not have lessons at this time of day?"

"Technically. But I knew you were comin' back, so I left a clone to do the lesson instead. 'S not like I need to know how to talk like some stuffed shirt aristo anyhow."

Kimimaro smiled at his friend's antics, knowing full well that Arashi was perfectly aware of why he needed the elocution lessons – a ninja had to be able to fit into any situation, and the blond's usual accent would hardly be suitable for some missions.

All thoughts of his friend fled his head as Arashi burst through the door of one of the many research labs and he saw Orochimaru at a workbench.

"Hey, Oro-nii, Kimi-chan's back." He announced.

"Ah, very good. Report please, Kimimaro," Orochimaru said, not looking up from his microscope.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi couldn't miss the blush that crept onto Kimimaro's cheeks as he began the report. The boy had some weird crush on Oro-nii, and it confused Arashi to no end. Didn't Kimimaro know that Oro-nii would never be interested? The Sannin had odd tastes, that was certain, but little boys weren't included in the rather long list. Not unless they were strapped to a table, sliced open, and screaming, of course, but that really went without saying.

Kimimaro's report was standard – he'd been sent to menace some minor Yakuza boss, kill a few underlings, make sure the man understood that he'd overstepped his bounds – and Arashi waited impatiently for the older boy to finish so that they could go spar.

He was disappointed in that respect when Orochimaru made them both sit and wait in one corner of the lab, telling them that they needed to be here for something important. He didn't tell them what, and Arashi could tell that his mentor was highly amused at the scowl that passed across his face.

He did not have long to wait, however, as less than ten minutes later, the door opened once more, interrupting the game of rock-paper-scissors he had been playing with Kimimaro. A short, wiry man in standard Sound Jounin gear entered the room, followed by four children of around the same age as Arashi. The Sound Four. They were rather different from when he had first seen them, almost a year ago now, during the attack on the capital of the Land of Tea.

Kimimaro whispered their names into his ear as they trooped in to deliver their report to Orochimaru, and Arashi took the opportunity to study them carefully.

The Jounin who was responsible for the group was apparently named Sazanami Kangen, and, according to Kimimaro, had a very short temper and a nasty attitude. He looked it to, with a dour, grim face, heavy eyebrows and short dark hair. He especially hated nicknames. _So, Kan-chan it is then,_ Arashi thought to himself, smirking at the imagined reaction. Nothing made him happier than seeing a Jounin seethe in impotent rage. Well, that was a lie, many things made him happier, but it was certainly in the top ten.

The first in line after him was the duo of brothers, Sakon and Ukon. Or rather, it had been two brothers, and now looked more like one-and-a-quarter. One brother stood there, long hair covering one eye, with the head of the second protruding from the back of his neck. They currently seemed to be bickering with each other over a point in the report, which was very strange to watch, especially when another arm sprouted from the second head and punched the first in the jaw. Arashi snickered at that until Kimimaro nudged him with his elbow to get him to stop.

After Sakon (Ukon?) was Kidoumaru. The boy still had an oversized bow, but this one was twice as thick as the one he had been using last year. The reason why he could now use it was obvious – Orochimaru had grafted two extra pairs of arms onto the boy. Kidoumaru was putting them to good use by playing on three different handheld game consoles at once. Something in the room irritated his nose, however, and he sneezed, spraying one of the consoles with saliva that hardened in the air, resulting in the console being ripped to pieces. The boy simply tucked the toy away and withdrew an operational one from somewhere in his clothes. Arashi shook his head in amazement. What a weirdo.

The next in line was someone Arashi had never seen before, a boy who looked triple the weight of his biggest teammate. He was apparently called Jiroubou, and Arashi disliked him at once, as the boy kept shooting him glares and sneers. He could apparently suck chakra from his enemies if he trapped them inside an earthen dome, which seemed kinda useless to Arashi – you'd have to have a team with you for it to be of any use, and it was unlikely to be able to capture more than one or two foes at a time, unless you got the jump on them. Judging by the size of the boy, he'd find it difficult getting the jump on anything.

The last in line was the only girl – Tayuya. She had a flute strapped to her hip, and was leafing through some sheet music, looking bored, as her Jounin-sensei delivered the report. She shot Arashi a glance, then ignored him in favour of the music. She had been modified subtly by Oro-nii to enhance her ability to cast, detect, and dispel genjutsu, which meant that she acted as a support to the rest of the team.

Arashi rested his chin on his hands and zoned out, waiting for the droning Jounin to finish his interminable report so that he could get going and get a good fight started.

What Orochimaru said next shocked him out of his daydreaming rather quickly.

"Ara-chan, Kimimaro, you will be working with the Sound Four for the next few missions. I know that you have been itching to leave the base, Ara-chan, so this is your chance. Sazanami, stay here, I wish to give you more instructions. While we are busy, perhaps you could get to know your new team, Ara-chan?"

Knowing a dismissal when they heard one, the young ninja trooped out of the room, Arashi waving goodbye as he left. Kimimaro led them to one of the larger training halls, and Arashi couldn't help but chuckle at the poisonous glances the Sound Four were sending in the bone-user's direction.

Once they reached the training hall, the Sound Four spread out to face Arashi and Kimimaro.

"Just 'cos you're Orochimaru-sama's pets doesn't mean you're better than us." Sneered Ukon(Sakon?).

Arashi burst out into peals of laughter. When he finally stopped, and paused to catch his breath, he responded. "No, but the fact that we _are_ better'n all of ya does mean that we're better than ya."

Kimimaro smirked his agreement, folding his arms proudly.

"Tha' fuck do you mean, scar-face? Don't look down on us!" Tayuya yelled, jabbing her flute at them.

"Well, a little test would be in order, then, hmm?" Kimimaro responded.

As one, the Sound Four took a single step back.

"Not against me, you idiots, against Arashi here. Hebirou-sama to you." He sighed.

"Fine by me, we'll totally own this noob. Game over, dude," Kidoumaru taunted, giving a thumbs down with all six hands.

Arashi simply grinned, formed a single seal, and suddenly the room was full of Arashis. A busy moment later and the Sound Four had drawn their respective weapons and backed into a defensive formation.

Tayuya began playing her flute, and Arashi could feel the genjutsu tugging at his senses, but a kunai to the hand solved that, the pain focusing him against the illusion. His clones, however, were not all so resistant, and some of them fell under the spell, writhing in agony before exploding into clouds of smoke.

Before he could retaliate, Sakon and Ukon were shooting forwards, eight limbs lashing out indiscriminately and dispelling clones in their dozens. Jiroubou similarly charged out, simply using his bulk to slam the clones out of the way. Kidoumaru had spat out a viciously barbed arrow, and was scanning the area to try and find the real Arashi.

He was not going to have any luck, however, as the real Arashi was currently creeping across the ceiling, cloaked in a camouflage jutsu. He planted his feet, increasing his chakra flow to his lower body as he did so, so that he had a firm grip on the ceiling, and then began to slowly let down a loop of wire, using more chakra to guide it to its destination.

Said destination was Tayuya's neck. Her arms stopped the noose from being immediately fatal, as they were still holding the flute to her lips, but the wire bit deeply into her flesh as she was hauled off the ground. Arashi had planted an eyelet in the ceiling, through which he had fed the wire, and then simply let go of the chakra in his feet the moment that the loop tightened around Tayuya. As he was still holding one end of the wire, this hoisted Tayuya clean off the floor, and, as he had pulled in wire as he fell, slammed her bodily into the ceiling. He let go of the wire, and she fell to the ground, lying there in a stricken heap.

"One down, three to go. Who wants to be next?" He jeered.

Jiroubou handily volunteered, charging at him, the fat boy's hands moving through seals. Just before he would have reached Arashi, he slammed his hands into the ground, causing a dome of stone and earth to burst forth. He leaned against it, panting, and smirked, thinking he had caught the pesky blond.

"Man, that sucks. How the hell did you get into this squad? At least the others are useful for something." Arashi commented from behind him, patting him comfortingly on the back.

Before the older boy could react, Arashi had leapt away. Sakon and Ukon and Kidoumaru were shouting warnings, but it was too late. The wad of explosive notes planted on Jiroubou's back detonated, ripping him into bloody chunks.

"If ya don't wanna go the same way, I'd suggest trying to impress me. Flute-girl over there passed, but you two still need to …" He was cut off as an arrow plunged into his shoulder.

The clone dispelled, and another picked up the sentence "… give me something that means I don't see you as total wastes of space." It finished, before another arrow punched it from it's feet.

Kidoumaru was obviously furious, as he had spat out another two bows, and fitted drill-tipped arrows to all three. He fired into the crowd of clones, dispelling whole columns with each shot, but they were seemingly endless, due to a certain blue-eyed ninja constantly refreshing their numbers.

Neither of the remaining members of the Sound Three (As Arashi now considered them) had noticed that the clones were not attacking, or that they were simply running around and confusing things. Arashi had gone for quantity, not quality with these clones, and they were useless for actual combat, as their own attacks would dispel them. They were great, however, for being distractions. Even more confusingly, he had interspersed regular clones with the shadow ones, so that about one in three of them was nothing more than an illusion.

This was frustrating Kidoumaru to no end, as he couldn't get a bead on Arashi if he kept moving in the sea of yellow and grey. He retaliated by webbing the ceiling and hauling himself up, hoping that the higher vantage point would give him the advantage. It certainly allowed him to see the battlefield better, but the clones were deliberately acting in such a way that he couldn't pick out single targets for more than a second at a time. This didn't mean he couldn't hit them – far from it, a second was all he needed – but he couldn't track the real Arashi.

He stopped firing and began gathering more webbing to his mouth, breathing in deeply through his nose as he did so. With a sharp exhalation, he spat a massive, sticky web over a quarter of the room, trapping the Arashi clones there. Well, the solid ones. With that corner of the room cleared, as he doubted the clones could break free on their own, he turned his attention to the remaining free area of the room.

He should have been paying attention to what was behind him, however, as Arashi had taken the opportunity to sneak around, up the wall, and back across the ceiling. He jabbed eight senbon into the spider-boy's back almost simultaneously, paralyzing all six arms and both legs, and the archer dropped like a rock, the only thing saving him from a broken neck the mass of Arashis he landed on.

Sakon and Ukon, meanwhile, were still pummeling away at the masses of clones, Ukon leaning the entirety of his upper body out of his brother's back so that he could strike behind him as far as possible. They only noticed their comrade's fall when he hit the ground, and suddenly realized that they were all alone.

Panicked, they resorted to something they rarely did; they separated entirely. Both brothers drew a kunai into each hand, and they circled, back to back, watching for Arashi's approach.

This did them absolutely no good, as Arashi simply dispelled all his clones.

"Match over, the three still alive are good enough." Arashi's voice said from the doorway. "See ya when we get our next mission, girly-boy."

With that last parting shot, he and Kimimaro strolled from the room, leaving a stunned Sakon and Ukon surrounded by destruction, splattered with the remains of one of their teammates, and utterly bewildered.

* * *

**AN: So, no more Jiroubou. Sorry if you liked him, he just doesn't work for me, and doesn't fit with the rest of the Sound Four in my mind.**

**Next chapter: Mission Time!**


	8. Assassinations and Infiltrations

**AN: Yay, new chapter. See my profile for a poll on what you want me to do for my next story.**

**Addressing some concerns: No, there will be no "Orochimaru betrays Arashi, Arashi goes goody-goody". If a betrayal occurred, Orochimaru would make sure Arashi died, and if he didn't, he would have to live the rest of his life in fear. **

**The accent – Arashi likes talking like that. He likes Oro-nii and all, but thinks he sounds like a dusty old textbook.**

**The value of corpses – everyone Arashi has killed, including Jiroubou, has had no appreciable reason to leave alive or intact, as there is nothing to gain from studying civilians or ninja with no bloodlimits – Orochimaru can get these by the dozen. As for the romance, perhaps it could be achievable, but the attraction would be one sided – Arashi is incapable of viewing other people as people. A girl might be useful in a fight or for sating some urges, but that's it. **

**Glad everyone is still enjoying it, it's got nearly 5000 hits already! **

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**Infiltrations And Assassinations**

Arashi leaned back against the wall, feeling the cold stone through his tough canvas shirt. He paused, his breath coming in short, ragged bursts as he tried to fill his lungs with air, one of which was trying to annoy him by rapidly filling with blood instead. His right hand was clamped, hard, over one of the wounds on his chest causing said irritation. He fought back a cough, one which would immediately give his location away, though he knew that he had only moments before he was found again. The trail of blood was far too obvious. His knees slowly collapsed, and he slid down the wall, leaving a trail of blood from the exit wound in his back.

_If only we'd had the proper intel, this would never have fuckin' happened…_

**oXoXoXo**

"_Hah, finally get a decent mission, not these boring easy ones we keep bein' fobbed off with." Arashi announced, upon hearing the details of their latest assignment._

_They were to infiltrate Takaroi, a small town in Earth Country, on the border with Fire Country, locate a small Iwa ninja cell that was operating from there, and wipe them out, making it look like Konoha ninja had done it. At the same time, they needed to assassinate the mayor and his family, and then steal the documents pertaining to the stationing of the Iwa ninja cell in the town. Finally, they needed to return to Oto without being captured or spotted. _

_Arashi thought that this sounded like it would finally be fun, and a challenge. Usually, they just had to go and kill a few bandits, or escort a minor VIP somewhere, or threaten a few yakuza. There was that one time they had to deliver some experimental chakra armour to Snow Country, but that mission had been far too short for Arashi to have a proper look around the place, so he chalked that one up under the 'boring' label too. _

_He glanced at the rest of his team. Kangen-sensei was looking bored and sour, as usual. Arashi made a face. The man had been nothing but bothersome ever since he'd been assigned to the same squad. Most Jounin didn't bother to scold Arashi, out of fear of Orochimaru, but Kangen was not afraid of the snake Sannin. He took a perverse pleasure in pointing out every fault in Arashi's techniques. He was improving Arashi's abilities, but the boy was still resentful over the fact that someone had the gall to call him on his weaknesses and even his attitude. Arashi supposed the man might have been bitter over Jiroubou's death, but the boy had been a useless dead weight on the team, and it was kill him then or have his weakness kill one or more of the rest of the team later._

_Kimimaro looked mildly interested in the mission, though he was far more focused on Oro-nii, a faint blush colouring his cheeks as it always did in the man's presence. He was also twirling a lock of his long hair around one finger absentmindedly. Arashi suppressed a sigh at the sight._

_Sakon and Ukon were snickering to themselves, sneering at the sight of the smitten bone-wielder. They never could pay attention to the long term, always too easily distracted by the now. That or too busy trying to get a look down Tayuya's shirt to pay attention to the mission briefings. They were handy in a fight though, and had a few handy tricks up their sleeves. Once you got them focused on the job at hand, they were tough to deter as well, which was another bonus._

_Tayuya was humming quietly to herself, fingers dancing across the keys of an imaginary flute. She was the team support, able to use her genjutsu techniques to aid them from afar, or her growing summoning skills to augment their brute force. She was also growing in her medical skills, something which irked Arashi, as he hadn't the fine control needed to be as good at that area as she was. Not that she had his skills in any other area, especially taijutsu, but it was still galling that someone who had spent such a comparatively small amount of time training was so much better than he was. _

_Kidoumaru was, as usual, tapping away at his consoles, glancing up at Orochimaru every so often and nodding to show that he was following the instructions. Arashi had always wondered how the boy could manage to play three different games at once, and chalked it up to some tampering on Oro-nii's part. _

_All four of his fellow teammates had also been given the Curse Seal, something Oro-nii had developed recently, just after Kimimaro had found that weird guy in the nearby woods. It was pretty damned effective in combat, but Arashi was apparently incompatible with it. He wasn't that bothered, as he could still take down any of the group with their Level 2 Seal activated, but he wouldn't come out of it uninjured, and Kimimaro could give him a good fight. _

_Orochimaru had explained it away as an aspect of his bloodline – the same one that had given him fangs, marked his cheeks and enhanced his senses, stamina, healing rate and chakra pool. Arashi was satisfied with that, as, after all, Oro-nii would never lie to him, or at least, never lie in a way that would hurt him. _

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi forced himself to his feet, drawing a kunai with his left hand. A whimper of pain escaped the corner of his mouth and he stumbled forwards, his dragging feet leading him out of the shadowed alleyway and right into a town guard, whose wild swing with the spear he was holding left another vicious gash across Arashi's chest. The kunai was flung in response, and sank into the soft, unprotected flesh of the guard's throat, dropping him before he called for more help. He couldn't hold back the cough any longer, and fell to his knees again, hacking blood all over the street.

**oXoXoXo**

_Arashi fingered his Konoha headband with a smirk, his fingers tracing the familiar-yet-strange symbol engraved on the slick metal. To think, when he'd been young, he'd wanted to wear one of these for real. He found it hard to believe he could ever have been so foolish as to _want_ to be one of the pathetic Konoha ninja. _

_He was dressed the part of a Leaf shinobi too – gaudy, impractical clothes, lots of unnecessary bandages, and toeless sandals. Not that he minded the colour of his disguise – he'd always liked a bit of orange, and frequently wore orange clothes while off duty. But only an idiot would wear such clothing while on a mission, and, if he hadn't seen it firsthand, he wouldn't have believed that anyone would be so stupid. _

_His fellow teammates were also dressed in similarly ridiculous outfits, with Kangen-sensei's being the most hilarious. He looked like a colourblind monkey had flung spandex at him, and he'd then put on what had hit him. The top clashed horribly with the trousers, the belt clashed with the bandages, and it all clashed with the sandals. Not to mention revealing far too much and offering no protection at all. The effect was finished off by the surly man's usual glower. The first time the team had seen him in it, they had all collapsed in howls of laughter. _

_Then again, everyone was wearing something stupid, and had been for the past few days. They had to perform the entire mission like this, to avoid any chance that the attack would be linked with Sound. They were even using Konoha-issue weapons and tools. Not that there was any way to conceal the bloodlimits of Kimimaro or Sakon and Ukon, or Kidoumaru's six arms, but ninjas were a diverse and odd lot, so such oddities were fairly easily explained away. Hell, Oro-nii had told Arashi about a shark-man who worked for Akatsuki, and the guy had apparently never got even the odd glance. _Takes all sorts, I suppose, _he thought to himself._

_They were to split into two teams for the mission itself – he, Kangen-sensei, and Kimimaro would be taking out the Rock ninja cell, and Tayuya, Kidoumaru, and Sakon and Ukon would deal with the mayor's family and the document theft. It was obvious from the team assignments how difficult the tasks would be – Arashi's team was the only one expected to meet any real resistance, and had all three of the squad's deadliest ninja in it to ensure success. Sakon's team's most difficult task would probably be not stabbing themselves with their own kunai by mistake. _

_It had taken them four days to reach the town, and now that they were in eyesight, they had paused to go over the plan again. _

_It was fairly simple – Sakon's team would go in first, as the mayor's mansion was further in than the Rock ninja base, and Arashi's team would follow after about ten minutes. They were all linked by concealed microphones, and could keep in contact throughout the mission to coordinate their attacks._

_Once they had reached their targets, Sakon and Ukon were to start killing the (hopefully sleeping) members of the mayor's household, Kidoumaru was to keep watch to ensure no-one escaped, and Tayuya was to find the documents. Meanwhile, Arashi's team was to kill all Iwa ninja they found in the base, then blow it up and mop up any ninja who came to investigate._

_The infiltration had been no problem – the town walls were hardly worthy of being called such, especially compared to those surrounding the capital of what was now Sound Country. The ninja's base had been similarly uninspiring, and, judging by the reports from the other squad, so had the mayor's mansion._

_It was once they had entered the base that it all began to go horribly wrong…_

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi scowled as he jerkily pulled himself to his feet once more.

_Why is it that my enhanced healing never kicks in when it could be really useful?_ He sullenly wondered to himself.

Wiping the blood from his mouth with his free hand, he staggered forwards once more, finally considering something that Oro-nii had warned him not to try unless he was in mortal danger.

_Well, with a flooding lung, surrounded by enemies, and no chance of backup, I ain't sure what else this could constitute, _he thought bitterly.

So he leaned forwards against a nearby wall, supporting himself with his free hand, and took a moment to centre himself. This was going to hurt, really, really, _really_ hurt, according to Oro-nii, but it would fix him up. Eat a good chunk of his chakra, but he had plenty of that left, and was perfectly happy to swap some chakra for a healed body. There was the other risk this technique ran – that if he messed up even the smallest part, he would die, dissolving into a slimy puddle where he stood. But, well, he was in a pretty crap situation right now, and he honestly couldn't get up the energy to be scared.

He closed his eyes, feeling his chakra system, the slow, rhythmic pulse of supernatural energy through semi-real channels. He exerted pressure, forcing chakra out of the coils and saturating his flesh with it, careful not to push too hard and rupture a chakra vessel. That would be just as fatal. Pushing that thought from his mind, he instead pulled to the forefront of his thoughts an image of his body, uninjured.

And then he _pushed_. That was the only way he could describe it. And boy, was Oro-nii making an understatement when he said it would hurt. It felt like someone was ripping off his skin.

Which was a fairly accurate description of what was happening – he was performing Orochimaru's very creepy, very effective healing technique. Hands appeared from the depths of his throat and forced his mouth inhumanly wide, allowing him to slide his own skin off, revealing a fully healed, fairly damp, and thoroughly relieved Arashi, standing next to his own cast off epidermis.

The discarded skin quickly blackened and crumbled, and Arashi began a slow jog away, thankful that the technique had worked, but vowing to never use the damned thing again if he could help it. It was useful, but far, far too taxing to have to use on a regular basis. Plus, it was just _gross_. Seriously, he'd just pulled off his own skin, and it had somehow healed him. It made him feel slightly icky, and he suppressed a shudder as he kept moving. Some things you just couldn't be prepared for, no matter how much time you spent with torture-obsessed mad scientists.

He hoped his team would be waiting at the rendezvous point. He needed a bath.

**oXoXoXo**

_The radio in Arashi's ear suddenly crackled into life, startling him slightly as he crept across the ceiling._

"_Kangen-sensei, Hebirou-sama, we have multiple hostile shinobi at our position, all Iwa ninja. Orders?" Came Sakon's voice, the tension he was feeling evident._

"_Put your mission on hold until we send up the signal here, that should draw them from your target. How many hostiles?" Responded Kangen-sensei._

"_We've spotted four of the fuckers so far, boss." Tayuya said._

"_Orders stand. Wait for the signal, give it thirty seconds, then go in hard, understood?"_

"_Yeah, over and out." Sakon muttered._

_Kangen rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. What had he done to deserve this? They had been told that there would be, at most, six enemy shinobi in the town, only one of whom would be a real threat. It seemed as though the intelligence had been faulty, however, as he could feel at least a further six ninja in the base. _

_Arashi grinned in anticipation of the fight, hoping he'd get a chance to blow off some steam, and maybe collect a trophy or two. His downed foes always carried something weird or interesting, and he made a point of gathering up a memento from each ninja he killed. His collection wasn't very big at the moment, but he hoped he could add a few pieces tonight._

_Kimimaro simply wanted to get the mission over and done with so that Orochimaru-sama would praise him some more._

_Kangen finally gave the signal to move forwards, two taps on his microphone, and the three ninja crawled carefully into what appeared to be the mess hall, all three cloaked in a powerful invisibility jutsu, courtesy of Arashi. _

_There were three Iwa ninja there, seated around a small table and playing dice. Kangen and Arashi drew their kunai, and Kimimaro slid a sword from both his arms. They positioned themselves carefully, and Arashi took a closer look at their targets._

They're hardly older'n me. This should be a piece of cake,_ he thought. Fresh genin were always fun targets. Even better, one was a girl. He licked his lips in anticipation. There was always something more satisfying about killing women. It made him breathe harder just thinking about it. _

_Sadly, he wouldn't get the girl this time, as she was Kimimaro's target. Pity. He just couldn't appreciate a good murder, that boy. Just saw it as something he had to do. It irritated Arashi to no end, especially since the bone-wielder had more confirmed kills than he himself did at the moment. It just wasn't fair. He was catching up quickly, but it still stung his pride._

_Pushing such thoughts aside for the moment, he noted that his two teammates were in position, as indicated by three rapid taps on their microphones. He responded with three of his own, and then began counting in his head._

Three.

_The boy directly beneath him reached up to scratch his neck._

Two.

_The girl across the table swore loudly as the dice came up snake eyes._

One.

_The three youngsters seated at the table launched themselves upwards at their would be amb… wait, what?_

_Arashi was so startled at the attack that he barely got his kunai up in time to block the attack, the blade scraping against the boy's forearm and drawing a little blood. It also dispelled the _henge no jutsu_ he was under, and suddenly Arashi was facing a fully-grown adult, one who looked very unamused._

Well, shit.

_Arashi leapt backwards, dropping to the floor and summoning three clones as he did so. He heard a faint buzzing at the very edge of his hearing, and knew that Kangen had launched his signature jutsu, a focused cone of supersonic sound which shattered every bone in an opponent's body. He could also tell, from the loud swearing, that said jutsu had missed._

_He didn't have time to worry about his team, however, as his would-be victim was approaching rapidly, hands in a high taijutsu guard. Well, a taijutsu specialist was hardly the worst match up for Arashi, but the rock gauntlets the man had covered his hands and forearms with posed a painful problem. He'd probably used a jutsu to do so, as Arashi firmly believed that no-one would be stupid enough to actually wear such things on a regular basis._

"_Damned Leaf, didn't you kill enough of us in the war? You insult us by sending Genin to do a Jounin's job!" The man howled, swinging wildly._

Jounin is a bit of an overestimation of ya abilities, friend, ya don't be much more than a Genin yaself, _Arashi sniped in his head, but was too busy dodging to vocalize the jab._

_In retaliation, however, he substituted with one of his clones, all of which had dispersed to get into good positions, then began the handseals for a particularly unpleasant Lightning jutsu. He was terrible at Lightning natured attacks, but figured that his opponent had to be Earth natured, so the extra chakra was worth it._

_He finished the seals just as the man destroyed his clone, which had been frantically dodging to give its creator time to finish his attack. As the Iwa ninja charged Arashi's new position, Arashi thrust his palms out, hands flat, as though to push the foe away. Lightning arced between his outstretched palms, then shot from his left in a near-invisible blast. A second followed from his right. The attacks weren't designed to kill, just to incapacitate an enemy for a few seconds. The way the Iwa ninja staggered back and then fell flat on his back suggested that Arashi had a little more time than that, so he signaled his clones to finish the man, and took the opportunity to cast a quick eye over the battle._

_Kangen was doing well, and had his opponent in a nasty double-arm lock, and was in the process of thoroughly breaking said arms with a look of vicious enjoyment upon his face. Arashi rolled his eyes, but knew that his sensei would finish the foe the second a new enemy showed up._

_Kimimaro was having a little more difficulty, as the girl – now woman – he was fighting was also a blade user. She had a plain katana, and was using it in conjunction with a kunai to match Kimimaro blow for blow. The slender teen was finding it hard to keep the older woman at bay, but it didn't seem like he was going to be overwhelmed just yet, so Arashi focused once more on his downed foe. Not that he'd taken his eyes off the man, he'd just moved so that he could see the battle better._

_His clones had killed the man. He was certain of this, because living people had heads which were directly attached to their bodies, not lying five feet away in a pool of blood. One of his clones tossed him a bundle of explosive notes that it had taken from the corpse, and the other handed him a small earring. Arashi pocketed his trophy, slipped the explosive notes into his pouch, alongside the others he had, and drew another pair of kunai._

_He crept up behind the woman Kimimaro was fighting, and his teammate fluttered his left eyelid briefly. That meant he wanted Arashi to blindside the girl from above. With a victorious smirk, Arashi pounced, his jump leading him in a high arc, easily covering the ten feet still between him and the fight. He descended on the woman with both kunai in an underhand grip, puncturing clean through her collarbones with both, burying the points of each blade into her lungs. Kimimaro finished the job by crossing his blades in diagonal thrusts into her throat._

_There was a loud snap from behind Arashi as Kangen finished playing and stomped the last enemy's skull in._

_Arashi's breath was coming far too quick and fast for it to be just from the exertion of the fight, and he could feel the heat of his blood in his cheeks. He lifted the kunai in his left hand to his mouth and tenderly licked the woman's blood from it, shuddering slightly at the delicious tang of blood on his tongue. Oro-nii would have been proud. _

_His clones wasted no time in searching the two new bodies for extra weapons, and liberated a few more explosive notes, a couple of smoke bombs, and a small pack of soldier pills. A necklace and a small rectangle of tattooed skin joined his trophy collection._

_There was no time to rest, however, as they all knew that the remaining enemies in the base must have heard the commotion of the fight, ninja being seemingly incapable of battling below a hundred decibels. So while Arashi's clones were searching bodies, the real Arashi was unsealing a few of his choice traps from his scroll and handing them to Kimimaro and Kangen to deploy. It took less than half a minute to place a good dozen traps around the room, including one concealed with each corpse and two over the entrance to the rest of the base. The rest were attached under tables and chairs._

_A few moments later, they were once more concealed on the ceiling, this time as near to the entrance to the rest of the base as they could safely get. Arashi smirked. The traps over the doorway here were not immediately destructive; instead they primed when someone entered through the doorway, and if that person tried to leave through the doorway again, delivered a nasty blade of wind in their general direction. The rest of the traps around the room combined explosions and weapons in a variety of unpleasant ways, but all of them had a very small kill radius. It would have been pretty stupid otherwise._

_Their swift actions paid off, as, barely four seconds after they were once more concealed on the ceiling, a further four Iwa ninja entered the room. Arashi had to restrain himself from swallowing loudly, as he recognized the uniform of the leader as being Jounin, and could see the Iwa ANBU tattoo on the woman's left arm._

_He knew that Kangen had spotted it too when the man signaled the attack orders – Arashi was to engage the two on the left, Kimimaro was to kill his target as quickly was possible, and Kangen would try to take out the ex-ANBU._

_But first they waited. The Jounin directed her team to check the bodies, and it seemed that these three really were fresh Genin, as one of them actually flipped the corpse of the woman Arashi and Kimimaro had killed to check her vitals. Needless to say, the boy was not in good shape after the trap triggered, ripping chunks out of him with whickering shrapnel. Arashi was disappointed, however, as he hadn't hit an artery, so the boy would probably survive. _

_That was going to be all the use they got out of the surprise traps, however, as the Jounin immediately made a handseal and began gathering chakra to dispel any genjutsu in the area. Arashi gave a mental shrug and triggered the rest of the traps, sending the two Genin that were still standing staggering, and completely missing the Jounin._

_The moment he finished triggering the traps, Kangen launched a volley of kunai at the Jounin, and Kimimaro flashed across the room, his Curse Seal activated to Level One, and killed one of the staggered Genin with a flurry of stabs, puncturing the boy in at least fifty different places. Losing no time, he then activated the seal to Level Two and charged the Jounin._

_Arashi was a few moments slower as he formed another brace of clones, sending one to finish the Genin downed by his trap, and the rest to try and help Kangen in his fight. He followed this with a sprint to the final member of the Genin team, who took one look at his blood-soaked figure and then ran, screaming, for the doorway, only for the wind trap to take her hand. Arashi simply stood behind her, placed one hand on her chin and one on her forehead, and twisted her head three hundred and sixty degrees._

_However quickly he dispatched his two targets, he was not fast enough to have stopped what happened next. Kimimaro and Kangen were going toe-to-toe with the Jounin, who was fending off Kangen's attacks and occasionally swatting at Kimimaro or killing one of Arashi's clones. _

_That is, until the Kaguya scored a hit on her, slicing a thin line into her stomach. In response, she concentrated her attention on him for two seconds. During the first second she snapped both of his swords. She used the second second to lash a kunai across his face. He nearly dodged it, but his attempt only saved his life. In exchange, she took both his eyes._

_The scream was bloodcurdling._

_One of Arashi's clones quickly substituted itself for the blinded boy, and Arashi lost no time in running a green-glowing hand over the other teen's face._

"_Sorry, Kimi-chan. She got ya good, no vision left to save. Get ya ass outta here, meet ya at the rendezvous point. Keep hidden." He ordered, turning Kimimaro in the direction of the entrance. The other boy's four remaining senses should get him out of the town easily enough, but after that it was anyone's guess._

_Meanwhile, Kangen was faring poorly against the Iwa Jounin. He was skilled, but she was on a whole other level. She had to be, as he'd never been in any form of ANBU, and she'd obviously survived at least one tour of service with them. He was already bleeding from a dozen small cuts, and she wasn't letting him get the range to launch any of his ninjutsu, which was crippling his fighting ability._

_After Arashi finished dealing with Kimimaro, he spent a few minutes trying to help his sensei, making dozens more clones, flinging the odd jutsu when he had a clear shot, but otherwise being very little help. Finally seeing it was hopeless, he spoke into the microphone._

"_Kan-chan, I'm gonna get outta here, rig a few traps on the way, you want I should abort the other team?" He asked._

_A barely-noticeable shake of the head was Kangen's answer to the question, and the man was relieved that he'd only have to hold off the woman for a few more minutes before he could try to escape, now that both his students were soon to be out of further harm's way._

_A few moments later an Arashi clone patted him on the back._

_Kangen didn't have time to scream as every explosive note Arashi had was detonated at once, inside the room. It took out Kangen, the Iwa Jounin, and the surrounding houses for fifty metres in every direction._

_Arashi had to lean against a wall for a moment to catch his breath, he was so excited, his eyes wide and his body twitching slightly. He knew that the ninja on guard at the mayor's mansion would come running in response to the blast. He had clones in every tree and on every rooftop around him, and it took less than twenty seconds to get first contact. Arashi reckoned on another mixture of enemies in the high-Genin to low-Chuunin range, and judging by the reports he was getting from the clones which were dispelling themselves to deliver the information, he was right._

_Four Iwa ninja were making their way across the rooftops towards the blast site, and Arashi waited for them to arrive and stare in shock at the devastation before he launched his first attack._

_The only warning the enemy got was the hiss of hundreds of kunai cutting the air, but it was enough for three of them to avoid the lethal volley from his clones. The fourth member of the team was not so lucky, and was cut down by the projectiles._

_A quick succession of wind jutsu shredded a second foe before they could pinpoint the real Arashi's position, and then the survivors were on him._

_He had kunai out and ready before they reached him, but was forced to take to the sky when the ground beneath his feet formed deadly spikes which thrust up towards him. The second of the survivors followed him up, a heavy saber in each hand, lashing out with a confusing mixture of stabs and slashes, which Arashi was hard pressed to parry. He was getting cut every fifth or sixth attack, shallow wounds, but enough of them would finish him. He was already tired from all the fighting he'd already done, and wasn't getting any less so._

_As he and his opponent touched down on the ground, Arashi was forced to take to the air once more as the enemy who'd cast the jutsu before burst from the earth beneath him, intent on grabbing his legs to pull him down. If it had been his team doing it, he would have admired the coordination, but as it was, he had more pressing concerns on his mind. _

_Like the two sabers now becoming intimately acquainted with his right lung. He didn't pause at the mortal wound, using the opportunity to drag his enemy closer and deliver a venomous bite to the man's shoulder, before pushing himself off the blades, worsening the damage. He'd worry about it later._

_What he should be worrying about right now was keeping the swordsman occupied long enough for the poison to take him, preferably without taking any further deadly injuries. Oh, and dodge the second ninja, the one who thought he was some sort of human-shaped mole. He had tried the 'burst-from-the-ground-suddenly' thing a further five times, and it was rather losing its novelty. _

_It took another minute, and a further seventeen painful cuts, for the poison to kill the tenacious swordsman, and Arashi was nearly dead himself. _

My healing factor never kicks in when I really need it, _he thought bitterly to himself._

_However, his exhaustion would not stop his last opponent, so he gathered his willpower and prepared for one final push. The ninjutsu specialist had finally decided to stop popping out of the ground, and was now performing an irritating jutsu which hurled rocks the size of his head at Arashi. _

_The jinchuuriki made his way forwards, dodging rocks sluggishly, and getting clipped several times in return, but came through the horizontal landslide not much worse off than when he'd entered it._

_His opponent was moving backwards as fast as he could, but Arashi was chasing him down. The man was always just out of reach, however, dodging all of Arashi's knife-hand slashes._

_At least, the Iwa ninja thought he'd been dodging them. The problem was that he was feeling like someone had taken a kunai to his insides, and it was getting worse with each narrow miss. It took him a few more moments to realize that Arashi was not, in fact, _trying_ to hit him with his hands. He was _succeeding_ in slashing his insides to pieces with a pair of near-invisible chakra scalpels, which protruded a good half-foot from the blond's hands._

_It took another few minutes of the two tired ninja casing each other around before Arashi finally hit a major artery, and the Iwa ninja simply couldn't stand any more. Not that the teen fighting him was faring much better, but the punctured lung the boy was sporting seemed to be little more than an inconvenience, and the Iwa ninja was just not that tough._

_Arashi finished him with a sweep through the neck, leaving a corpse unmarked on the outside, but shredded on the inside. As he staggered towards the nearest alleyway, he could hear the shouts of the town guard, and the ringing of alarm bells. He hoped the other team's mission had gone more smoothly than his._

_He made his way into the alley, stumbling to the end of it, before pausing. Arashi leaned back against the wall, feeling the cold stone …_

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**Whew! Longest chapter so far I think. Different style here, tell me if you like it. **

**NET TIME: We see things from Team Sakon's perspective.**


	9. Infiltrations and Assassinations

**AN: Just going to say that this is written as if it is Sakon giving a report – should be entertaining. First time trying 1****st**** person, hope it works well, and should give a good look at his character as well. I may be making up a bunch of stuff about his personality, but I don't have that much to work on.**

**It's also rather short, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.**

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**Infiltrations and Assassinations  
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"So, we made our way into the town, no problem. Their defenses were useless, bunch of amateurs. Me, Tayuya and Kidoumaru made our way to the first location easy enough, no problem from the guards or anything. That was when we spotted the first hitch – a bunch of fuckin' Iwa nin were guarding the mansion.

What? Yeah, yeah, shut up, Kidou. Anyways, like I said, there were three to five of them – that better, you obsessive bastard? Thought so – and we reported it to Kangen-sensei. He said we were to hold position and wait for the signal.

Well, we held position. And waited. And waited. And got really fuckin' bored. Tayuya wouldn't let us pick up a few civvies for entertainment in the meanwhile though. Bitch.

Yeah, I went there. What you gonna do about it?

Where was I? Oh, right, waiting. Yeah, well, we waited, musta been, what, twenty minutes? Half an hour? Thereabouts, whatever.

So, after a seriously boring wait – we didn't even take any cards with us, stupid, I know – we get the signal. And by signal, I mean massive fuckin' explosion. And by get, I mean we were knocked off our feet. Bastard Hebirou and his hard-ons for explosions.

Anyways, we wait another half-minute like we were told. Those Iwa nin lit outta there like their arses were on fire. Well, I imagine Hebirou managed to light at least one Iwa nin on fire that night, and knowing that sick fuck he enjoyed it too. Well, that sounds like I wouldn't enjoy it. I'd enjoy it, but not in the same way your apprentice does. Man, does that guy get off on pain. Other people's, of course, I mean, he's a sick fuck, but he isn't stupid.

But I digress. We waited for the Iwa nin to get outta sight, and then we took positions around the mansion. There were a few guards on the outer walls, but their patrols were staggered to the daft bastards couldn't even see each other. So Kidou just sniped the dumbasses one by one, and no-one noticed a thing. It was like they wanted to be picked off.

So, we make our way over the wall, make sure all the guards on it are permanently out, and use the elevation to check the interior. Turns out, the mayor was a cheapskate on security. There were only four guards inside, in addition to the six on the walls, and it took us all of three seconds to deal with 'em.

'Course, it couldn't all be that easy, could it? The second I sneak in, with Tayuya and Kidou covering the outside, I get jumped by two more morons in armour.

They start bitching me out on how the damn Leaf are traitors, yadda, yadda, evil murdering scum, etcetera. Not that I disagree, and they weren't far off in their descriptions of me either, to be honest, but really, who talks when they should be fighting?

Other than Hebirou, Tayuya. Seriously, it was a rhetorical question. Besides, he only does it to creep you out.

I make short work of them, though it was hard not to chop 'em up slowly, I knew I had to silence them before they sounded the alarm. Kidou may be good with that bow of his, but he can't get an entire family and all the servants before they raise a ruckus.

So, with the entrance clear, Tayuya comes in and starts her creepy music. Fuckin' freaky how she uses that flute. She worked this genjutsu that sends everyone to sleep, and the bitch includes me in the effects too!

Oh. Right, Ukon just wanted a nap. Sorry, 'Yuya.

Well, everyone is supposed to be asleep, so I make my way through the ground floor, where there's all the servants. Not a one of 'em is still awake, so I slit some throats, stab out a few eyes, you know, the usual. Leave a couple 'a Konoha-issue kunai in the corpses too.

So the ground floor's clear, and I make my way to the basement. Not that I'm expectin' much, you know, some food, maybe a small laundry, perhaps a secret passageway or two. Yeah, the usual. And I find all that, check the secret passageway, which leads, stupidly, right into the garden.

Damn, but that would be useless. Kinda like a stacked redhead trying to avoid Hebirou. We all know how that ends – violently, non-consensually, and topped with an unpleasant death. Guess you're lucky you're so flat, Tayuya.

OW! Stop that! Hit me again, and I will end you, bitch. I mean it.

Fine, fine, Orochimaru-sama. I'm _so_ _sooooooooory_, Tayuya-_chan_.

OUCH! Fuck it, next time some creep tries to bust you up, I ain't helping you out.

Wait, where was I? Basement, right. Like I was saying, I checked out the basement, only thing there was a couple'a servants passed out in front of the boiler. Why waste an opportunity, am I right? Took a few moments, but I got both of 'em stuffed into the fire. Nice and spacious it was, needed to be, the amount of wood they burnt in it.

I made my way back upstairs, checked in with Tayuya and Kidou via radio, everything was going fine. Killed a few more guards on my way through the first floor, but it was all studies and dining halls and shit. I told Tayuya to come up to check for the documents you wanted – the girl's better with all that boring paperwork crap than I am, just gimme a knife and tell me who to kill, you know that's what I'm good at – while I continued up to the top floor.

What is it with bigwigs and their tall houses? I mean, seriously, are they compensating for something or what? It's like shouting to the world 'I have a tiny dick, but I have money, so it doesn't matter'.

Oh, bitch, you did not just say that. I do _not_ know all about compensating. That's Kidou's area. I mean, seriously, those arrows have gotta mean something.

Alright, Spider-boy. Try and pin me to the ground again and there's gonna be trouble. I'll hand your unconscious ass over to Kimimaro, so help me. Don't think I won't.

Yeah, so, made my way to the top floor, expecting a few more guards, plus the mayor, his wife, and their five kids.

What do I find? A few guards, plus the mayor, his wife, their five kids, _and a fucking Iwa nin_. I mean, that was not in the job description. Yeah, yeah, I know Hebirou's team had it harder, hear my heart bleed. I wasn't prepared for an awake enemy. 'Specially not one that was a fuckin' Chuunin.

That's what he declared himself as, anyways. Yeah, no shit, he really said 'I am a Chuunin of the Village Hidden in the Rocks, prepare to meet your end.' Arrogant twat. I know I'm not as good as Hebirou and his little boyfriend, but I can still kick ass when needed.

Shut _up_ already, Tayuya. I _know_ he isn't Hebirou's boyfriend. Geeze, could you make your crush any more obvious? You do know you aren't likely to survive the first date, right? You attracted to abuse or something? … Wait, please don't answer that.

I pull out my blades, and kick this lazy brother of mine awake.

Stop it, Ukon, you know hitting me in the face hurts you too.

And we square up to this self-proclaimed Chuunin. You always hammer the whole 'teamwork' aspect of a fight into us, Orochimaru-sama, and it was certainly what won us this one. We pull out Level Two Cursed Seal pronto, don't want to let the bastard get any chance at all, and charge in.

Figures the fuckwits in charge of the Iwa cell would leave a ninjutsu specialist to guard their charge. An Earth-aspected ninjutsu specialist. In a narrow corridor. Several metres in the air.

I'd almost have felt sorry for the guy, but, yeah, he was a dick, and an enemy, so we ripped open his stomach and danced in his guts. No, not literally, Kidou. We were on a schedule, remember? Dancing in guts is only for when you have time to spare.

I swear, you're like a kid. Never mix business and pleasure.

So we tear him a new one, take off his head, and chop off his hands to make sure. You never know. Remember that missing nin a few months back? Yeah, the one who used the _henge_ to feign a mortal injury, then jumped Kimimaro. I didn't want to turn my back, only to find steel becoming intimate with my internal organs.

We finish the Iwa nin, certain he's dead, and set off to end the job. Mayor and wife went down easy, the youngest kid was in bed with them, and he was even quicker. Next door were the next two youngest, probably eight and ten. Damn, but do civvie kids break easy. Didn't even need a knife. Fourth kid, bam, blade through the temple.

Fifth kid, now she was a difficult one. I mean, we were ahead of schedule. By about twenty minutes, since the documents weren't even hidden. And, damn, but that girl was easy on the eyes. She woulda been, what, sixteen? If only Hebirou had been there, we coulda sealed her into a scroll and bought her back for some entertainment. She was a blonde, so no competition from him either. Odd how he's so generalized in his sick fuckery, but is only really interested in redheads for sex. Wonder if it's 'cos of his bloodlimit?

I would have loved to have spent those twenty minutes enjoying her. I really coulda had fun. But the mission comes first, so I didn't even get to play with her a little. One kunai across the throat and she was finished. Used her blood to leave a message on the wall, like you said – Enemies of Konoha, take note – and then I was making my way back down to regroup.

You know how hard it is to write in blood? The damn stuff goes everywhere. Still don't see why I couldn't have used ink.

Right, I made my way downstairs, met up with Tayuya and Kidou, and we made ourselves scarce. Or rather, we got halfway outta the town when we got a message from Hebirou. Kimimaro hadn't made it to the rendezvous point, and had been blinded, so we had to look for him.

I wanted to leave the snobby brat, but Hebirou woulda turned me inside out, and I know he's important to your plans, boss, so I did like I was told. Used the microphones to talk to the tosser, who managed to direct us to him by describing what it smelt like. That's where Kidou's adaptations came in handy, and we eventually found Bone-boy hiding behind a dumpster in a blind alley. Ironic, that, it being a blind alley and him being blinded.

What's that look for, Kidou? You know you wouldn't have got that if I hadn't told you.

So we grabbed Whitey, and hauled ass outta the town. Turns out only Hebirou was at the rendezvous point, and he looked like shit. Blood everywhere, outfit shredded, but that freaky healing factor of his had fixed up his injuries, as far as I could tell. He told us Kangen-sensei had bravely sacrificed himself to take out an ex-ANBU and send the signal. Right. Like anyone believed that. More likely he torched sensei and creamed his pants doing it, fucked up bastard.

Anyways, that's about it, Orochimaru-sama. We made our way back, no other problems, and then I came here to report when you called me." Sakon finished, grinning expectantly.

Orochimaru put his head in his hands. Why did his subordinates have to be so difficult?

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**Next chapter, the team seek out a new sensei! (Cookies to those who can guess who, it should be pretty obvious.)**


	10. Foxes and Fathers

**AN: Sorry I didn't make it clearer, but Arashi is developing a lot faster than the normal human – he is currently about twelve, but could pass for fifteen. Which means he looks about the same age as the rest of his team. **

**Sorry for the vagueness with the ages, but we're entering manga territory now and Kishimoto is crap at showing a decent timescale – as an example, the Fourth Hokage was in power for between two years and less than one – we just aren't told. We know that Naruto is 12 at the start of the manga, and that he turns thirteen somewhere during the first part (pre-timeskip), but that's it. So I may be taking some liberties with time.**

**Sorry for the short chapter here, but it sets up the next few and gets some important stuff out of the way, as well as giving a little insight into the next arc.**

**Also, possible spoilers. If you didn't know who Naruto's dad was already.  
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**New chapter, enjoy!**

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**Foxes and Fathers**

"Kimimaro, I have some good news, and I have some bad news," Kabuto said, pulling his green-glowing hand away from the young Kaguya's head. "The bad news is that you have a brain tumor. Wait, don't worry, this is the good news. We can remove it without any risk. You are very lucky, if we had not caught it now, it would likely have metastasized and spread cancer throughout your body, at which point you would have been incurable. Sadly, this, combined with the extensive damage to your eyes, means that we cannot perform a transplant for at least a month, while your head heals from all the trauma inflicted. There is only so much I can do with medical jutsu."

Kimimaro nodded slowly, and his furrowed brows, hidden beneath thick bandages, finally relaxed a little, as he realized that he would, eventually, be able to see again.

"Thank you, Kabuto-san. When will you be operating for the tumor?"

"Immediately. It is too dangerous to leave any longer. Please lie back, it will be over soon."

Kimimaro felt the cold steel needle pierce his arm, felt the ice creep up his veins, and then felt no more.

**oXoXoXo**

"Damn, you woke up," Muttered an irritated voice to Kimimaro's left. Sakon.

"Bah, if you're that jealous ya don't get to have ya head cut open, I can easily solve that problem for ya," Arashi retorted.

Kimimaro smiled lightly. "Am I to assume that the operation was successful then?"

"Damn straight, Kimi-chan. You'll be allowed to stat training again within the week. Be good to finally have someone with skill to spar with again."

"You as fucking blind as Bones here? How the hell d'you think you're gonna be able to spar with this eyeless dick-jockey, fuckwit?" Tayuya grumbled.

There was the sound of an open hand hitting flesh, then the thud of a body against concrete, followed by a soft groan of pain. Arashi had likely backhanded Tayuya into the wall. Again.

Arashi gave a light chuckle. "Maa, he can still fight well enough. 'Sides, I'll go blindfolded too, give me a chance to practice my blindfighting."

There was a snort of derision. Probably Tayuya, but it could have been Sakon.

The door slid open, squeaking slightly. The wheels needed oiling.

"You four, please leave my hospital room. You're making it look untidy, and Orochimaru-sama wants to talk to you." Kabuto ordered.

There was a mumble of consent from the Sound Three, and a pat on the shoulder from Arashi's slightly clawed hand.

"See ya later, Kimi-chan."

**oXoXoXo**

The meeting with Orochimaru had been brief, the Sannin only wanting an update on their progress. Not that there was much to update him on, not since the last mission, barely a week ago, but it was a routine that the Otokage was loath to break.

After he dismissed the Sound Three, he gestured Arashi closer to the desk he was sitting at finally looking up from the papers he had been going over throughout the meeting.

"So, I hear that Kimimaro was saved a slow and painful death thanks to being blinded. Amazing what good can come from seemingly disastrous circumstances, is it not, Ara-chan?" Orochimaru said.

Arashi held back a sigh. The man was obviously trying to broach a topic that he did not particularly wish to broach, and was approaching it in his usual circumspect way.

"Yeah, well, he's no use to us if he's dead, is he? By the time his next check-up came around, the cancer woulda been too advanced to deal with, 's what Kabuto said. Pity about the eyes though, kinda cripples his usefulness for a while."

"Hmm, well, it is better than him being dead from something we could have fixed. Now, I have something that I need to tell you, Ara-chan. I need you to let me finish what I am saying before you respond, as it may make you a little angry. However, know that I have withheld this information for your own good."

"Hah, what's the worst you can tell me, Oro-nii? 'Sides, if you didn't tell me, it's gotta be for a good reason, right?"

Orochimaru nodded, and then steepled his hands in front of his face, peering intently at the young man in front of him. He was proud of his work on this one – he had grown into a lethal and efficient weapon, one which would never betray him. But he was about to take a fairly large risk. It was calculated, and he knew it was unlikely that the boy would react negatively towards him, but it might not have quite the effect that he wanted it to. Arashi was unpredictable that way. He would react to some things exactly as predicted, and to others in a completely irrational way. _Just like his damned mother_, Orochimaru thought. _At least his father was predictable, even if he was the reason I had to leave._

"I have two things to tell you. The first is to do with the seal on your stomach. The other is connected to this and is about your parents."

"Huh, you know who my parents are? Coulda told me sooner, Oro-nii. Woulda been cool to know where I got the bloodlimit from." Arashi grumbled, scratching at the whisker marks on his face.

"The seal has far more to do with what I have told you is a bloodlimit, I am afraid, Ara-chan. Let me explain. Just over twelve years ago, Konoha came under attack from the deadliest of the tailed demons."

"Yeah, the nine-tailed fox. I know that."

"Correct. What the books do not show, however, is that the fox was not killed by the Fourth Hokage, but instead sealed into a newborn child. You."

"Huh? I have a demon sealed inside me? Awesome! Kinda explains the massive chakra pool and the fast healing, as much as a bloodlimit would." Arashi responded, a broad grin on his face.

"Correct. It also seems that, as you are behaving in a manner that the demon approves of, you are receiving more benefits from being a host than the seal would usually give you. Your deceptive actions, merciless nature and frequent killings seem to please the sealed demon, and in return it has increased the chakra transferal from itself to you. It is only by a miniscule amount but, it is the reason why you have developed so quickly, and why you display some animalistic traits."

"Any way to increase the flow?"

Orochimaru shook his head. "Demonic chakra is very dangerous, and a higher transfusion rate would likely prove detrimental in the long run. The seal allows you to access the demon's power when you are in extreme danger, but you should never need to do so. If you do, I cannot predict what the effects would be, but they would probably not be positive." _And I have invested too much time and effort into you to lose you to something so trivial _was left unsaid.

"Alright, so what? What's the part I would be angry over, Oro-nii? It kinda makes sense that you left telling me until now, I might not have had the restraint when I was younger to not play about with the demon chakra." Arashi admitted.

"Your parents. Their names were Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato."

"Wait, Namikaze? As in, the Fourth Hokage?"

"Yes, Arashi. I am afraid that your parents deliberately sacrificed your future, and any happiness you would have had in the village, just to save weak civilians. Your father could have picked any child, but he hated you enough that he felt you had to suffer the burden." _Not that this is remotely true, but how is he to know this? Besides, the stupid man should have picked a random orphan and then slain them. It would have been the sensible thing to do._

Orochimaru kept his gaze steady upon Arashi as the boy mulled this over. "That explains the villagers' treatment. They thought I was a demon, and responsible for killing their 'beloved' Hokage. Four years, no friends, no family, cold eyes on me every day, and no explanation why." Arashi shook his head, a soft laugh escaping his lips. "Idiots. I'm even more glad you rescued me from that shithole now."

Orochimaru nodded, and curved the corners of his lips upwards fractionally. "I am telling you this now because you will need to be wary. My old organization is almost ready to begin moving once more, and Akatsuki wish to collect all the tailed demons. If they capture you, you will be killed and the demon extracted. If you spot any member of Akatsuki, run as hard as you can. You are, sadly, not quite ready yet to face them, and they are all at least as powerful as I am."

"Alright, Oro-nii. Did you want anything else? I was gonna go research how to fight blinded, I remember seeing something about using chakra as a form of echolocation in the library." Arashi asked.

"I want you to research Jounin-ranked missing-nin, and bring me a shortlist of three that you would like to have as Jounin-sensei. You will need one for an assignment soon, and I cannot spare any of my Jounin at present, any it is always good to recruit some fresh blood."

Arashi nodded at this and left the office, waving a lazy goodbye. Orochimaru didn't miss the new anger simmering behind the boy's eyes. "I wouldn't want to get on his bad side today," the Sannin chuckled to himself.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi was furious. Not at Oro-nii, no, his father-figure had good reason to keep him in the dark about these things. No, he was angry with Konoha, with the villagers, with the ninja, and most of all with his father.

"Father. Right. Never knew him, don't want to know him, never gonna get the chance to even if I did. Good riddance to that selfish bastard. Hope he suffered." He muttered to himself as he strode down the corridor.

He had lived in an orphanage for the first four years of his life, thinking that there was something wrong with him. That he was evil. The quickly-hushed conversations about him when the adults thought he couldn't hear. The whispered curses when he passed certain areas. The porcelain-masked ghosts only he could see, protecting him from any threat before he even knew the threat was there. The empty, cold stares from villagers, accusing, looking through him, not at him.

Well, he knew exactly what was wrong with him. He had been born to a heartless bastard of a father. And to think he had once idolized the man. Oro-nii was all the family he needed. He had cared for him when no-one else had. Trained him, raised him, given him what he wanted. Respect. Attention. Power over those who would deny him.

He grinned. Oro-nii's plan was coming to fruition soon, he knew. The last Uchiha would soon be theirs. Konoha would burn. And he would be right there at Oro-nii's side, laughing as those he once thought of as his fellows died at their feet.


	11. Unquiet Waters, Part I

**AN: Wow, over 10,000 hits and 60 favourites :D**

**Alright, this is going to be the longest arc so far – probably 3-4 chapters. No, I'm not telling you the whole of Orochimaru's plan, it'll come out over the course of the arc.**

**Also, as we're closing on that benchmark, I will write an interlude for Twisted Melody for the 50****th**** reviewer. They get to choose a character from this story and I'll give you a chapter with them as the central character. **

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**Unquiet Waters, Part I**

"Tell me again why we're in this shithole?" Kidoumaru grumbled.

"We need a new Jounin-sensei, Oro-nii's sending three of us into the Chuunin exams in Konoha," Replied an exasperated Arashi.

"Yeah, but why here? What kinda loser Jounin would hang out in Wave, of all places?"

"Sometimes ya go where the money is. Gatou, some local bigwig, can swing some serious cash around. That's another reason we're here. We have to find a way to take control of that money away, he's fucking with some of Oro-nii's operations."

"So what's the rush? That bridge is gonna be done soon, and then Gatou's company is gonna get the biggest nerf I've ever seen."

"Think it through, Kidou," Sighed Sakon. "We take Gatou's money _now, _and we get millions more than if we waited, and we send a message. Plus, Orochimaru-sama's plan is absolutely brilliant for this bit. We pull this off, we're gonna get some serious credit."

Orochimaru had been monitoring the situation in Wave for a long while, as the poverty-stricken nation was a perfect location to take unwilling subjects from for his experiments. However, Gatou had been interfering with some of the kidnappings, and had begun trying to muscle in on some of the more lucrative drug smuggling businesses Orochimaru was using to help fund his Hidden Village. So Gatou had to go.

However, it wouldn't do to only disappear the man. No, the world needed to know what happened when you messed with Orochimaru, even if you didn't know you were doing it at the time. So when he received word of Gatou putting out a request for missing-nin, he sent Arashi and his team to pose as such in order to infiltrate the organization. Even better, Momochi Zabuza, one of the Jounin on Arashi's shortlist, was rumored to be interested in taking the job, and so Arashi could approach him with the offer to act as Jounin-sensei for his team.

Which was why they were currently lurking in a dilapidated shed near the location Gatou had chosen to meet with the Demon of the Mist. Arashi wanted a chance to talk to the man before he agreed to anything with Gatou, and to adjust the mission if needed. He had hundreds of clones out in the trees all around, with instructions to intercept Zabuza and let him choose a meeting point for their discussion.

They had been waiting there for two days already, and Arashi was getting bored. He was tempted to ditch the idea of Zabuza as a Jounin-sensei and just get on with the mission, but he had a schedule to keep to, and the bridge-builder wouldn't be back from ordering materials in Konoha for at least another three weeks. So Arashi was willing to wait another day. It wasn't like they could advance the plan much before the village leader's return, anyway.

Luckily, one of his clones finally dispelled, preventing him from doing something regrettable to one of his teammates for entertainment, and he now knew where Zabuza wanted this meeting. He was, of course, to go alone, and Zabuza would, ostensibly, extend him the same courtesy.

Arashi snorted softly in amusement. The man was a master of assassination. If he wanted to kill Arashi, then there was very little Arashi would be able to do to stop him. But then, that was the beauty of clones, and it was hardly likely that Zabuza would be physically present at the meeting himself.

**oXoXoXo**

"So, what does Sound want with me, brat?" The swordsman demanded, standing with his arms crossed, his stance impatient.

"My lord wishes to make you an offer, Zabuza. An offer of … gainful employment," Responded Arashi's clone, its mouth tilted in a smirk.

"Hmmf. Why's the Otokage interested in me? He should know why I left Mist."

"We are well aware of why you left your village, Demon of the Mist. You will find the Otokage rather more relaxed in his rule than the Mizukage. Besides, unlike that decadent fool, the Otokage would not let you survive any such attempts."

"Hah, threats from this mysterious 'Otokage' mean nothing. Give me the terms, without any of your childish attempts at intimidation, boy."

"As you wish. You are offered immediate and indefinite employment as a Jounin of the Village Hidden in Sound. Any companions you wish to bring with you are also welcome, and will be instated into a suitable rank upon our return to Sound Country. Further details are in this scroll." Arashi responded, a sour scowl on his face.

He tossed the scroll carefully towards Zabuza, making sure it fell short of the man. The Zabuza-clone (for it certainly was, no ninja would personally open an unknown scroll) proceeded to scan the contents, eyes narrowed in concentration.

"This looks like better work than life as a missing-nin, I admit," Zabuza said. "But I want a few concessions to this."

"What?"

"It says that any of my companions with bloodlimits will be … requisitioned. I will not permit this. I spent too long shaping my tools to throw one away so carelessly."

"I am authorized to offer any bloodlimit bearers Clan status, should they be so inclined. Here is the scroll detailing their responsibilities," Another scroll arced towards the shirtless man.

A quick scan, a nod. "Acceptable. I will be bringing with me three Chuunin, one of whom has a bloodlimit. He will be happy to father the requisite number of children."

Arashi's produced a third object from its person. "The agreed fee for your joining," And added a further four bags of coins. "The bounties for each Chuunin, and a reduced payment for bringing a bloodlimit user to the village."

The clone placed the hefty sum on the ground and backed away.

"So, you gonna come out of hiding and meet me in person, brat, or am I just gonna stand here like an idiot?"

The clone smirked back at him. "I'll be at the cabin three miles northeast of here."

The Zabuza clone nodded, stepping forwards to collect the money.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi caught the hooked kunai he had been juggling with as his clone dispelled, his mouth twisting into a victorious smile.

"We got a deal, folks. He'll be here in a minute, get ready."

With that, the five of them made their way out of the cabin to meet their new sensei.

**oXoXoXo**

Fifteen minutes later, in a much nicer, very luxurious cabin, Gatou's agent finally had to wait for the expected ninja no longer. He had been sitting on the veranda, leaning back in a comfortable chair, with a cup of green tea on the small table next to him and a copy of _Icha Icha Paradaise _in his hands when the Mist missing-nin walked casually from the forest.

He had to say, there were more of them than he had expected. When Zabuza had said he would be bringing some help, Gatou had told him to expect perhaps two more ninja. Not five extra, three of them barely teens.

Momochi Zabuza was wearing his usual outfit – stripy trousers, no shirt, and a bandage-covered face. His massive sword was slung casually across his back. Slightly behind and to the left of him walked a short, masked individual, in a loose robe, under which was worn a stripy shirt.

On the Demon's other side were two teenage boys. The taller of the two was very strange looking – six arms? The agent had never seen such a thing. He was wearing a sleeveless black shirt and loose trousers, tied to his legs with bandages. Every arm bore a metal bracer, and a length of stripy cloth was wrapped around his waist. The boy's grey hair hung loose around his face, which had been painted in a camouflage pattern

_What is it with these guys and stripes? Some sort of fetish?_ The agent wondered, sipping his tea.

The shorter of the two teens had thick black hair, bound back into a short ponytail, and was wearing a sleeveless striped shirt, revealing that his shoulders bore complicated tattoos. His three-quarter-length grey trousers were unbound, and he wore a solid-looking pair of boots. His hands were covered with curious gloves, a dark, mottled grey, the fingers of which were tipped with short metal claws.

The final two of the group were walking a short way behind, and seemed to be conversing quietly. They had wild brown hair, their faces were covered with some sort of breathing apparatus, and they had concealed the rest of their bodies behind ragged cloaks. Their forehead protectors had been customized with crude horns.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi fought to keep the smirk from his face. A little hair dye, a little make-up, and he and Kidoumaru were practically unrecognizable as themselves. He flexed his hands, making sure the chakra-conducive metal mesh in his gloves was sitting comfortably. He'd come up with the idea for his new weapons after his last mission, where he'd used the chakra scalpel to finish an enemy. The claws on the tips of the gloves were connected to the interior mesh, allowing him to channel his wind-natured chakra through them, extending the claws to close to a foot, meaning he was very difficult to disarm. It made for an excellent surprise attack as well.

The storage seal-tattoos on his shoulders held a supply of giant shuriken, the collapsible version in his right and the regular on his left. He had a third seal-tattoo, in which he stored all his travel equipment and miscellaneous things, on his outer right thigh. It was the simplest of his seal-tattoos, but since he only stored a single scroll in it, it didn't need to be complicated or large. The fact that said scroll contained a number of seals, many of which contained other seal scrolls, simply meant he was the most efficient at setting up camp.

He'd been considering a fourth seal-tattoo, to store any interesting corpses he came across, but for the moment was making do with a scroll for this purpose. Orochimaru still wasn't certain it was safe to have the seals, and had denied his request for the internal storage seals that the Snake Sannin himself had, stating that the increased level of complexity was too risky in combination with the twisted genius of the seal on his stomach. This was the same reason he hadn't received the Curse Seal - the danger was just too great. It was a pity, because Arashi would have loved to have been able to store weapons in his oesophagus like his mentor did. Ah well, he made do with the regular methods.

**oXoXoXo**

The ninja took their time walking to the impassive agent, Zabuza clearly enjoying the over-the-top entrance. Arashi was certain that the man was using a minor wind jutsu to get the loose bandages around his face flowing in just the right way. Not that he begrudged his new compatriot the drama – it was always important to make the right first impression, and a display of strength was the best way to do that.

Not that the agent seemed to notice the effort the Mist missing-nin was putting in. He was far too absorbed in that orange book of his. Arashi narrowed his eyes. The _Icha Icha_ series were a sore subject for him. Written by a _traitor_ to his Oro-nii, a filthy, spineless wretch who refused to back up his teammate in his time of need. A man who had left the village in order to write third-rate, tame pornography, instead of pursuing worthwhile interests. A man who could have been a respectable Seal Master and a friend to Orochimaru, but instead chose to keep his ties to the pathetic village of Konoha. No, Arashi was _not_ impressed by the agent's choice of reading material.

A sequence of subtle hand-signals was flashed to Zabuza, who gave a tiny nod of approval. Arashi finally allowed a feral grin to break onto his face as he reached to his kunai pouch and withdrew a barbed blade, one of his nastiest weapons. With a flourish, he launched it at the hateful book with his right hand, pulling back with his left sharply as it hit. The barbs sank into the trashy novel, and the nigh-invisible wire attached to the kunai was pulled taut, dragging the book from the agent's suddenly limp fingers. Arashi's fingers flashed through handsigns as the book flew through the air towards him, sending a burst of flame up the wire to consume the book in a spectacular fireball.

"Hope we aren't interrupting anything, friend," Growled Zabuza.

"Theatrics may impress the commoners, Momochi-san, but I was expecting a professional, not an over-the-top pervert and his harem of boy-toys," Sneered the agent, mourning the loss of his beloved book.

With a long-suffering sigh, the masked boy laid a hand on Zabuza's shoulder, restraining him from lunging forwards and slaughtering the agent where he sat.

"Please refrain from insulting Zabuza-sama, Agent-san," The boy said softly. "Or I will not stop him again."

The agent nodded and finally rose from his seat, setting his tea down on the table beside him.

"Gatou-sama is offering a significant reward for anyone who eliminates the bridge-builder Tazuna. He will require Tazuna's head as evidence. The bridge-builder will be returning from Konoha within the next few weeks, and we have it on good authority that he will be protected by a team of Leaf ninja." The agent said.

Zabuza's only response was a grunt and a waved hand, indicating that the man should continue.

"If you agree to work for Gatou-sama, then he will meet you in the Gatou Corporation Headquarters, just outside of Wave. The full details will be available to you there," The agent flicked his hand at the group dismissively. "Now shoo. I have better things to do than waste my time talking to you uncivilized apes."

Now, Momochi Zabuza had a number of good qualities. He was loyal to his friends and subordinates. He was a master of the blade, and unparalleled at fighting blind. He detested abuse of authority for selfish measures. But he was neither patient nor tolerant. He had let the first insult slide, as it would have upset Haku to see someone killed over a brief misunderstanding, and it hurt Zabuza when his young apprentice was disappointed in him. However, the agent had taken his continued existence too lightly, and the further attacks on Zabuza and his men could no longer go unpunished.

There was a complicated sound, the result of a sword being drawn, used, and sheathed in a single, nearly-instantaneous moment, and the agent's offending hand was separated from his wrist. It seemed as though Zabuza hadn't moved from his position, only the smear of blood on his sword evidence of the action.

"That was a warning. Once more and I end you," Zabuza growled, turning from the screaming agent. "Let's go. We can be at the headquarters within the hour."

The ninja blurred out of sight, disappearing into the trees almost faster than the eye could follow, leaving the agent knelt on the ground, clutching his stump of a wrist and weeping piteously onto the dirt.


	12. Unquiet Waters, Part II

**AN: Sorry I took so long to post this one up, real life got in the way. **

**Anyways, enjoy!**

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**Unquiet Waters, Part II**

Kidoumaru's fingers skittered across the keyboard like droplets of water in a hot pan, writing and re-writing countless lines of code in the computer. It was the newest model, slimmed down from the bulky, clumsy types that were the usual everywhere but top-end businesses, but it was the same in every way that mattered. It contained all the master data for Gatou's businesses, from his account numbers to his passwords to his property addresses. Kidoumaru was currently installing a number of hidden routines to re-route all of these assets at the press of a button, to a number of different accounts across the world. These accounts would then split the assets and send them off to other accounts, and so on, until the money just disappeared. It would all eventually find its way into one of Orochimaru's pockets, with not a sign as to how it got there.

Of course, if they were caught doing this, their cover would be blown, and it would cause more than a few problems for their team.

Which is why, when Arashi knocked out the two guards at the door, he sealed them into two pre-prepared scrolls and formed clones which immediately transformed into the guards. He'd unseal the guards later, when their watch was over, and sneak them into their bunks. With his clones guarding the door, there would be enough warning if someone was to come to check the records room.

While Kidoumaru busied himself with the computer, Arashi was directing a half-dozen clones in locating property deeds. These were passed to another three clones, one of whom was using a seal to copy the documents, but with several obvious flaws that made them illegal, then passing the original to the next clone, who sealed it into a scroll. The third clone was placing another seal onto the obvious forgeries, which made them appear identical to their originals. This seal could be erased with a single thought from Arashi, and then the documents would return to their original state.

All this seal work made it seem like Arashi knew what he was doing, which was true only to a certain extent. He had memorized a number of common – or useful – seals, such as the storage seals and the seal to make explosive tags. However, he was useless with the mechanics of seal theory, as it was intensely book-based, and he considered books his natural enemy.

Orochimaru had given up trying to turn Arashi into a competent seal-writer, much as he had given up trying to teach him any genjutsu. He often joked that Arashi was only two-thirds a ninja. Even the camouflage jutsu Arashi used wasn't genjutsu – it was an advanced variation on the _henge_, and it changed his body so that it was entirely see-through. Oddly enough, this made it a better method of hiding than genjutsu, but it required crippling amounts of chakra to make work, which was why it was only Arashi that could use it with impunity.

Arashi was half way through the documents when Kidoumaru gave the keyboard one final, definitive stab with his finger. The spider-boy stood with a groan and stretched, all six arms spread wide, his joints clicking as he did so.

"Thank the gods that's over. That's a +5 computer of awesome, but whoever programmed it has to be using Intelligence as a dump stat, you know?" Complained the boy, pulling out a handheld console from … somewhere. Arashi had never managed to figure out how or where the other teen stored all his games, but he could always lay his hands on at least one console.

Kidoumaru strolled over to stand next to Arashi, thumbs working maniacally on the console, at odds with his relaxed shoulders and half-closed eyes. He looked like he was in a meditative trance, which made Arashi smirk. Kidoumaru, meditative. Right.

"How much longer you reckon on the deeds, Boss?"

Arashi considered the pile, scratching the back of his neck absentmindedly. "Probably be done within the next half-hour. I can always come back to finish up later if I have to, though."

"Damn, that's fast. Wish I could use as much chakra as you. If I had clones like that, I'd be able to play my games so much more," Kidoumaru commented. Arashi noticed that the boy had produced a yo-yo, several oddly-shaped dice and a square of paper from somewhere, and was spinning the yo-yo, rolling the dice in his palm, and making origami with the paper.

Arashi rolled his eyes. Anyone who thought he was uncontrollably energetic had never met Kidoumaru. The teen could not keep still. Any inactivity resulted in nervous fidgeting, twitching, and general annoyingness. There was a good reason Orochimaru let Kidoumaru take his games into meetings, as it was the only way to get through them without the boy sending everyone else insane. He could also pay attention to everything going on around him while he was playing three consoles at once, which impressed even Arashi.

The two fell into silence as Kidoumaru ran out of things to say, and Arashi was busy running over the rest of the day in his head. It had been three weeks since they had started to work for Gatou, and during that time they had done little other than sit around and wait for news on the bridge builder.

Well, Gatou _thought_ they'd done little but sit and wait. In reality, Arashi and Kidoumaru had been scouting out all the guard locations, patrol routes and shift changes, as well as locating a number of key rooms. Arashi had also been practicing with Zabuza, getting to know his new sensei and his fighting style. It was surprisingly similar to his own, opening with trickery and disorientation, then following with overwhelming force.

He'd managed to pick up Zabuza's _Kirigakure no jutsu_, the trademark technique of the Hidden Mist, and found it to his liking. The chakra-imbued fog allowed him to roughly locate anything within the area of the technique, while blinding anyone else in it and confounding most other detection techniques. He thought it would probably be very useful for Kimimaro, especially in his current state.

He'd also managed to talk Haku into showing him his bloodlimit. Arashi had not been disappointed – the ice techniques would be a valuable asset on the battlefield. The only problem was that the effeminate boy seemed to have a few qualms about killing. He'd lose them soon enough, but it still irked Arashi to talk to someone so willfully innocent. A ninja should not despise death; they should embrace it, in his opinion. Well, except their own death, of course. There was a difference between _knowing_ you were going to die and _wanting_ to die, and Arashi stood firmly in the 'live as long as you can' camp. A lot of ninja didn't, even if their death wish was subconscious.

He snorted softly to himself. There were bound to be more than a few issues when Haku and Kimimaro finally met properly – the boys were almost identical in some ways, but polar opposites in others, and Arashi could already see that they would rub each other the wrong way.

He was jerked from his chain of thought by a tap on his shoulder, and he turned to see one of his clones standing there, the scroll into which all the deeds had been sealed held in one outstretched hand. Arashi took the scroll and dismissed the clone with a thought, turning it, as well as all the other clones in the room, into a cloud of rapidly-dissipating smoke.

"Job done. Let's shift before someone gets lucky and notices us," Arashi commanded.

Kidoumaru nodded and followed him to the door, where Arashi tapped out a rapid rhythm on the metal. A replying set of staccato taps told him that the way was clear, so he and Kidoumaru slipped out of the room, all evidence that they had been there gone.

Arashi's clones had the sealing scrolls containing the unconscious guards with them already, and would replace themselves when the time was right, the self-destruction seals on the scrolls ensuring that no evidence of the deception would be left behind.

The two boys returned to the rooms that they were sharing with the real Mist missing-nin to find Zabuza wearing an enormous, shark-toothed grin.

"Good news, sensei?" Kidoumaru asked.

"The Demon Brothers just reported in. The bridge builder is on his way, and Leaf only provided him with a single Genin team."

Arashi couldn't help it. He tried to hold it back, he really did, but it was just so ridiculous. He burst into hysterical laughter.

"Oh…oh, that – that's fucking classic, that's, well, that's just so stupid!" He cackled, bent in half and clutching at his stomach. "This will be so … so easy, damn!"

Zabuza just grinned wider, and Kidoumaru licked his lips in anticipation.

**oXoXoXo**

Hinata looked around herself nervously, keeping an eye out for any enemies that might appear, as they had been taught at the Academy. She was so worried, this was her first time outside of Konoha, and what if she messed up? She'd never live it down. Her father wouldn't let her, nor would her cousin, nor, worst of all, would her little sister. Kurenai-sensei had assured her that they would be perfectly safe, it was only a C-rank after all, but Hinata couldn't help but feel overwhelmed.

Why did they have to do this mission, with the danger of leaving the village, escorting this rude, slovenly drunkard back home? She blamed Kiba for it. Not that it was blame, per se, no, she didn't dislike that she was on the mission, but it was certainly the Inuzuka who was the cause. He'd been so frustrated stuck on D-rank missions, and, after being assigned the job of hunting down the Fire Lady's pet cat – again – he had snapped, demanding a tougher mission, one that was 'a test of his skills'. The Hokage had simply given an amused smile and assigned them this mission instead.

Hinata had been excited, for once, certain that her father would be proud of her for this, at least. Her team was the first of the graduating class to get a C-rank, and she was certain that when she returned home, successful, he would finally grace her with a small smile of approval, or perhaps a tiny nod, or, and this was only in her wildest, loneliest dreams, he might even give her a proud hug.

But she knew all of these fantasies were just that – fantasies. A Hyuuga must not show emotion. A Hyuuga must always be in control. And her father was a Hyuuga to the core. It didn't help that she was such a disappointment to him, that her sister, even her cousin, were both so much better than she was. Despite graduating from the Academy as second-best Kunoichi – the first being Sakura, of course, her written test scores giving her that vital handful of points to land her the top spot – and placing fourth overall, with Sasuke and Shino both scoring better than her, she was not Rookie of the Year, and so her father had no interest in her results.

Neji, her 'inferior cousin' as the Elders referred to him, had graduated Rookie of the Year. Her father had graduated Rookie of the Year, with his brother a single point behind him. But Hinata knew that she had to work to earn any respect in the clan.

And she would. She would work hard, harder than anyone else. She _did_ work hard, sneaking out of her house early in the morning and late at night to work herself into exhaustion, every day. But it seemed to be a waste of time. No matter how hard she worked, Neji was always three steps ahead of her. Hanabi was only one step ahead at all points, but Hinata was almost half a decade older than her, and still lost all of their matches.

But she still tried. She had inspiration, someone else who worked even harder than she did, and even had some of the same goals. To be acknowledged as a great ninja, despite whatever handicaps they may have. To prove that upbringing had nothing to do with what kind of person you were. To make their sensei proud. To defeat Neji.

Yes, Rock Lee, despite all his oddities, struck a chord in Hinata's heart. She saw past the strange spandex, the stupid haircut, the out-of-control eyebrows, to the gentle, caring heart beneath and the indomitable will that drove the boy, who was essentially a cripple in ninja terms, to strive to defeat possibly the greatest genius the Hyuuga had ever produced. _And he was doing it_. Proof positive that, with _enough_ hard work, one could at least begin to overcome the obstacles life set in front of you.

Not that she was deluded enough to think that she would be able to beat Neji. He put in at least as much work as she did, and was so gifted at the Hyuuga arts that he reaped dozens of times the benefits from his training as she did. But if she gave up, if she surrendered to what Neji condescendingly described as 'her Fate', she would never forgive herself, and she would never have the courage to approach Lee. Her father would never approve, but he never did, and this was one thing that Hinata would not be discouraged from by a blank stare.

"HINATA! GET DOWN!" Kurenai bellowed, hitting Tazuna in a flying tackle.

Hinata only just managed to hit the floor before a massive sword swept through the air where she had been standing and cleaved into a tree.

Before her team had a chance to react, a massive, shirtless man appeared on the blade and sneered down at them, and three other ninja appeared form the trees around them.

"Gatou wants your head, bridge-builder, and he's going to get it," Zabuza announced.

"That's Zabuza, Demon of the Hidden Mist! Keep back, he's too much for you to handle," Kurenai ordered, drawing a kunai.

"And I have no idea who you are, woman. Means your head's worth nothing, and you're no threat. Move aside and let me take the civilian and you and your kids don't need to die," Zabuza growled.

"Zabuza-samaaaaaaa," Arashi interjected in a high-pitched whine, head tilted to one side, a slightly crazed grin on his face. "We can sell the girl, yes, she'll make a good profit, see the eyes, the eyes! Cloud would, yes, Cloud, very interested, enough to retire, certainly, plenty, yes! White-eyes, white-eyes, white-eyes! Pretty coins for the dark girl!"

Arashi was enjoying playing the crazy role a little too much, Kidoumaru thought, but it was certainly convincing. Especially the thin line of drool coming from the corner of his mouth. The half-comprehensible gibberish helped too.

Zabuza's smirk widened, and suddenly he was behind Kurenai, blade halfway through a swing.

"Looks like today's your unlucky day, girlie."


	13. Interlude II: Tayuya

**AN: This interlude is written for Ensoa, who gave the 50****th**** review for this story. **

**Thank you to everyone who reads and enjoys the story.**

**WARNING: This chapter contains severe child abuse (not described, but implied). Skip past the italics if you can't stomach that sort of thing – the rest of the chapter will still make sense.**

**Oh, and Orochimaru as the nominal good guy. That might be worse.**

* * *

**Interlude: Tayuya**

_She shivers in the dark as cold air licks against her bare skin. The collar around her neck is rough iron, the short chain linking it to the wall heavy against her slender frame. She is sat in a corner, knees drawn up against her chest, eyes focused into the middle distance._

_It has been hours since the last time, she thinks. It is hard to keep track of time down here, especially since she has such a hazy concept of it. She judges the passing of minutes by the noises around her – the creak of a step on wood, the muffled sobs of others, the heavy panting of yet another glaze-eyed man. _

_She thinks that the last may have been the end for today, but she cannot be certain. She can never be certain. She doesn't want to sleep incase she is woken again to work, but she is so tired. She wants to close her eyes, but if she does, she is afraid that she will be woken by a rough, calloused hand around her leg, or her arm, or her neck, and she will scream, and that will only make it worse._

_She has long learned now that screaming and crying don't help her. They help _them_ sometimes, but she always comes off worse from it. So she keeps silent, bears the pain, retreats into that little space inside her head that she keeps protected for when she desperately needs to leave._

_She is hungry, and if it is the end of her day, she will soon be brought food and water and, if she is lucky, her father will visit. _

_She loves her father. He always helps her get rid of the pain – gives her drinks that burn all the way down her throat and bitter-tasting powders that make her head fizz. They stop her hurting, at least for a while, and then her father hugs her close and tells her _I love you_, and _You're such a good girl, Yuyu-chan_, and strokes her long hair and kisses her forehead. She doesn't mind it when it's her father, he makes sure she doesn't feel the pain, even when she's pinned beneath him onto the hard cold stone._

_If she is very lucky, it is time for her bath. She is led from the darkness up a set of splintered wooden steps, and handed over to a cold-eyed woman, all painted lips and too-long eyelashes, who methodically washes the blood and grime and filth from her body, and washes her hair, combing out the tangles. The final task is to dry her off, in a rough, threadbare towel that has seen far better days. She likes the towel. It is warm, and comfortingly scratchy against her skin._

_Then she is led back down the stairs again, into her dark little cell. It is always cold there, and as she is chained to the wall once more, the floor is always damp. She knows that they must clean the room when she is taken for her bath, as the floor is never sticky when she returns, and always is when she leaves._

_She has been down here for a long time. She remembers the outside still, in vague memories of green and blue and brown, the smell of flowers and dust. Here there is black, the smell of blood and stale sweat and worse. _

_She does not remember what clothes feel like, though she knows she wore them once. It has been so long that her body knows only the cold kiss of dead stone and the hot rasp of greedy hands. _

_She is seven years old, and she has lived here for more than half that time._

**oXoXoXo**

_Orochimaru was, to be frank, bored beyond belief. He came to this armpit of a town following leads on a long-forgotten bloodline, but had discovered nothing of value. The supposed 'bloodline' was a simple physical deformity, and an enormous waste of his time. The one who led him here is already a skinless, eviscerated corpse, and Orochimaru refuses to leave without at least a little compensation. He is always looking for new recruits to his forces, new subjects to be experimented upon, and he may as well pick up a few people – or corpses – while he is here._

_He always picks the slums for this purpose. No-one cares when someone disappears there, there are a huge variety of different targets to pick from, and nearly every whore in the town lives there. This means that any children left behind by careless ninja looking for a good time end up in such places, and the children of ninja almost always make better ninja than civilian children. Chakra in the blood, so to speak._

_Of course, the very best places to find subjects are hidden very, very carefully. Even within the laissez-faire ruleset of the Elemental Countries, there were still some crimes so abhorrent that they were illegal. Murder. Rape. Torture. All of which would be catered to in the sort of place Orochimaru was seeking. _

_If he wanted children, especially children no-one would miss (and children were the best for his experiments – a growing young body so much more accepting of any adjustments than a grown one), then he needed a place like this. A few carefully placed questions in the worst bars in town led him to some shady characters in some shadier alleys, an answer from one of said characters led him here._

_The place had no name – of course not, they hardly wanted to advertise to the wrong people, now did they – but Orochimaru recognized it the second he saw it. It was much the same as every other such place he had visited. It stank of blood and money, pain and fear, sex and death. It was a nondescript two-storey house, seemingly deserted, on a narrow street of similar such houses, but to Orochimaru's finely honed ninja senses is glowed like a beacon._

_He had never bothered with subtlety at this point before, and he didn't now._

_He kicked the door in, sending it flying clean through the wall opposite to embed itself four inches deep into the back wall of the house. The commotion brought a scream from upstairs, and a number of shouts from below. There was no response from this floor, as the door guard had been clipped on the shoulder when Orochimaru made his entry, and the force of the blow had snapped the man's back and severed his spinal cord. Orochimaru hadn't even consciously registered the slight resistance his foot met as he stepped through the blasted entryway, and the force of the unconscious stomp squashed the man's head like a grape._

_The shouting got closer, and Orochimaru moved towards it, killing the men who rushed at him without even bothering to look at them. He was focused on finding his targets, the children who he could sense below him, in the basement. _

_By the time he made the stairs, he had to use chakra to hold his feet to the floor, so slick were they with blood. Now he was close enough, he could smell the children below, and a sick grin crept onto his face. _Excellent_. There were at least a dozen of them still alive down there, a good haul._

**oXoXoXo**

_She was sitting in her corner, awaiting the next time. She had been woken by a muffled thud from upstairs, long grown inured to the regular noises of the house. She listened with detached interest to the shouts and screams, the noises of parting flesh and cracking bone, as they got closer and closer. She wondered if this was the next man come to use her. _

_She was mildly interested when the door did not open with the scrape of a key in the lock and the squeal of unoiled hinges. Instead, there was a scream of tortured metal, and the door was torn clean of its fixtures._

_She looked up at the slender man stood in the doorway. He seems different to the other men. She sits still as he slinks across the room to where she is sat, the only movement her eyes as she tracks his movement. _

_He squats down in front of her with a neutral expression on his face. She flinches as he flings an arm towards her, but finds herself wrapped in something odd. It is dry and rough, and doesn't feel anything like her towel, and has funny black squiggles on it._

_With a puff of smoke, the sealing scroll absorbs the girl._

**oXoXoXo**

Tayuya wakes with a start, her breathing coming quick and ragged. She clenches her hands in the shirt of whoever it is she is tucked up next to and buries her face in their chest, trying desperately to get herself back under control.

It is a rule, unwritten and unspoken, amongst her team. If you wake up and find one of your teammates clutching to you, you don't move away. You don't wake them up. You just lie there, hug them back, and hope that it helps with whatever hell they're imagining in their sleep.

Seeing as they all sleep in the same tent, and all have seriously fucked up histories, it isn't surprising that this happens at least half the nights they spend on missions.

They are on their first mission with Arashi and Kimimaro, and Tayuya is worried. She knows how Arashi acts, how cruel he can be, and hopes that he doesn't see their weakness. She thinks that he will be merciless about it, picking away at the ragged edges of her team's sanity until all of them collapse under their neuroses.

She takes a deep, calming breath, and realizes that the boy she is clinging to smells different to Kidoumaru or Sakon or Ukon. He smells like sweat and blood and faintly of the musty scent of an animal den. Not like Sakon's blood and metal and sweet perfumes, nor Ukon's tears and sleep and spices. Nothing like Kidoumaru's dry, papery smell.

She dares a glance upwards and sees she is holding _Arashi_. She instantly tenses up even more, terrified that he will wake and see that she is there, and thinking that he will kill her, at the least hurt her, for this infraction. She flinches when she feels him mumble in his sleep, and then he shifts, and she _knows_ it's all over.

Then his arm comes up and around her shoulder, the fingers stroking through her short hair, his other arm around the small of her back and pulling her closer. She feels his nose nuzzle into the crown of her head, feels the contented growl that reverberates through his body, and dares to relax a little.

"Odd, isn't it?" A voice whispers through the still air.

She turns her head the little that she can manage, and sees Kimimaro sat at the open entrance to the tent, white hair shining silver in the moonlight. A faint smile graces his lips, and his eyes are on Arashi. They seem softer than usual, almost unguarded.

"When he's asleep, he almost looks his age, no?" Kimimaro observes. "Shocked me, the first time I saw him like this. He looks innocent."

Tayuya can't help but agree, though she's in no position to be able to reply.

"He was my first friend, you know. Gave me food, let me out of the cage, even gave me purpose in the world. He let me meet Orochimaru-sama. That's why I'm warning you," He adds, his tone turning stern. "Don't wake him. Don't struggle. Just go back to sleep. In the morning, don't mention this. But if it happens again," And here his voice turns desperate, "Just do the same. Give him company. Even if he doesn't show it, he still needs companionship."

Tayuya thinks on this for a moment. She's never seen Arashi get a hug from anyone. Never seen him get a friendly pat on the shoulder. Never seen him shake hands, or even exchange high-fives with someone. Never seen him touch someone except to do violence.

Kimimaro smiles again. "Just don't go doing this in daylight. You won't like the reaction."

Tayuya manages a nod, then closes her eyes, sensing the conversation is over. She hears rustling as Kimimaro makes his way through the tent, feels a brief pat on her shoulder, and then the tent is silent again, save for soft breathing and the sounds of the night outside.

She snuggles in closer against the larger body next to her, the warmth suddenly calming rather than frightening, and drifts back off to sleep.

**oXoXoXo**

After a few missions, when the team is finally gelling better, Tayuya notices something else about Arashi.

Whenever the team is in the main Sound base, none of the team sleep alone save for Arashi. Tayuya sleeps next to her maid, a quiet, mousy girl a few years older than her, a non-threat to her perception. Not male, not noticeably older than her, and so not prone to inducing the more traumatic of her nightmares.

Kidoumaru sleeps next to his maid too, a motherly woman in her forties, who treats the boy as a favourite nephew, spoiling him rotten. Sakon and Ukon sleep next to each other, neither trusting anyone else to keep them safe at night. It is the only time the two separate, and yet paradoxically the closest they can ever get.

Even Kimimaro shares his bed with another, a cheerful, energetic woman in her mid twenties, his personal servant. Not that he's physically interested in her, but even the ice-queen himself needs physical contact. Tayuya wonders how unstable he'd be _without _it, considering what a moody bastard he is usually.

Orochimaru, too, has bedmates, and though his are for less innocent purposes, he still sleeps next to them. They are the best non-ninja prostitutes in the world, and he is their only client, but they still touch him, still lie next to him at night. Tayuya doesn't doubt that her boss has more than the odd bad night, for all that he fakes having no conscience.

Arashi sleeps next to no-one.

Oh, sure, he fucks every girl between the ages of twelve and fifty who catches his eye. Some of them even want him to, though whether that's self-preservation at work or they're genuinely attracted to the blonde psycho is up for debate; the point is, he never sleeps next to them, unless he's just left them as a rapidly-cooling corpse. His bedroom is sacrosanct, and the only one allowed in besides the boy himself is Orochimaru.

Tayuya doubts that the Snake Sannin is the tender hugging type, even in private.

She wonders if there's some connection between Arashi's lack of physical contact and his violent impulses – alright, Orochimaru seems to love the kid like a son, but years of living with only the boss as company can't be good for human contact.

She finds herself more intrigued by the blond than before – she thought he was just another thug, but perhaps he's more interesting than that. At least he doesn't treat her like he does any of the other women in base. Hell, he doesn't treat her like he does most of the men on base either. He treats her like the rest of her team. She respects that, even if she isn't exactly enamoured with his violent methods of expressing disapproval.

But then, every time he backhands her into a wall or slams a fist into her solar plexus, he helps her to her feet afterwards and steadies her on her feet. He wants her to pay for her transgression, but at the same time ensure that she's still operational. It's more than she's ever been given before. It's more than she's ever expected.

And sometimes, she thinks it's more than she deserves.

* * *

**AN: OK, Tayuya officially has several screws loose. **

**If you didn't get the last line, or it offended you, I did some research into child abuse, and often, the children involved end up blaming themselves – thinking that it was something that they did that caused them to suffer. The last line is meant to indicate that Tayuya still feels like this – Orochimaru doesn't strike me as the sort of man to indulge in counseling.**

**Normally I wouldn't explain this so thoroughly, but I feel that leaving it might cause confusion, anger or upset. I am in no way condemning Tayuya or trying to imply child abuse is right/overexaggerated.**

**Xchy out.**


	14. Unquiet Waters, Part III

**AN: Hah, double update! Enjoy. I ended it on an evil note.  
**

**Also, Crazy!Arashi is too much fun. I think I may have been influenced by watching **_**Now and Then, Here and There**_** this week. It's got a great story, amazing character development, absolutely insane peoples. What's not to like?**

**

* * *

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**Unquiet Waters, Part III**

"Looks like today's your unlucky day, girlie."

Kurenai wasted no time in diving forwards, rolling over her right shoulder as she hit the ground. Even so, the blade had scored a thin cut along her back. If she'd been a half-second slower, she would have been cleaved in two.

She rose to her feet running, using the momentum of her roll to propel herself onwards. She didn't turn, but still began issuing orders to the empty air in front of her.

"Kiba, Shino, buy us time. Hinata, run. Get out of here!" She yelled.

The mission was over. _Fuck Tazuna, my team are the most important issue here. I couldn't live with myself if I lost any of them,_ she thought to herself.

She ran straight up the trunk of a tree, pushing off the bark about fifteen metres off the ground, twisting in midair to face her enemies, forming handseals as she did so. As she completed the turn, she caught a glimpse of the three other Mist missing-nin moving to tackle her team, one of them saying something she couldn't quite make out. She was having none of _that._

She released the genjutsu, targeting the three, and grinned victoriously as all of them stopped immediately, looking scared, confused, or, in the case of the gibbering one, angry. She snorted. No way were a bunch of kids getting out of _her_ genjutsu.

Now she could focus on the –

Impact.

_Wha… what just happened?_ Kurenai wondered, confused as to why she was now looking very closely at the scrubby grass.

White-hot agony.

"Well, sweetheart, looks like you managed to tag my subordinates. Shoulda paid a little attention to the real threat, hmm?" Zabuza rumbled from above her. "I consider it rude to kill someone before I know their name, so if you'd be so kind?"

Kurenai simply kept staring at the ground, her brain trying to process what had happened. She'd been in the air, and then … nothing. The next thing she knew she was face down in the dirt, her left arm ablaze with pain.

Zabuza grunted, cautiously flipping her onto her back with the tip of his sword.

"You still with me, dollface? I'm running outta nicknames here, any longer and I'm gonna have to get insulting," He commented, leaning casually against the hilt of his sword.

"Bastard. You can kill me, but leave the … kids alone," Kurenai groaned, clutching at her ruined arm and surreptitiously slipping another kunai from her sleeve.

"Hmf. Princess over there ain't leaving unless she's in our company, she's worth more than a Kage to the right people. Now, last chance, darlin'. Name, or unmarked gravestone? Your choice."

"My name …" Kurenai panted, mentally preparing herself. "Is Yuuhi Kurenai, you BASTARD!"

With that shout, she simultaneously flung her kunai at Zabuza's head and rolled herself backwards and onto her feet. She pushed off, launching herself back into the air, and grabbed her limp left hand with her right, forcing it into the handseals needed.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi grinned his insane grin as he stalked towards the cowed Genin team, licking his lips in anticipation. A Hyuuga, something that Orochimaru would kill millions for.

"Hehehe, white-eyes girl, white-eyes girl, no seal on your forehead, white-eyes girl! Secrets not so well kept, bad clan, bad Hyuuga, punish them, yes, no! They give us presents, all wrapped but no bow, hmm? Send them a nice note, we should, no? Yes! Better a tasty girl than the bitter boys, hmm, girls sweeter, bleed nicer. Not kill her though, no, no, can't kill her, we'd lose the pretty shiny coins, make Zabuza-sama angry. Angry. Bad boy! BAD! We're so sorry, so sorry, please, no, no, good boy, yes, we're a good boy. Good boys get to have _fun_." He said, keeping up the steady stream of words as he continued towards the girl. At the last sentence his eyes finally met those of the Hyuuga heiress.

Hinata let out a terrified squeak and sucked her head, her knees bending involuntarily.

And then she and the rest of her team, Tazuna included, dissolved into a cloud of butterflies. Arashi scowled. The butterflies fluttered slowly towards him in odd, jerky movements, as though they were almost too heavy for their wings. They'd flap, shoot into the air rapidly, and then descend slowly, only to flap again a few moments later. As they approached, Arashi could make out the glittering edges of their wings, and tried to get away, but couldn't move.

He looked down to find his entire lower body covered in thick, leafy vines, binding him to the ground. This was getting ridiculous. He hadn't even felt the vines wrap around him, where were they hiding such an advanced Ninjutsu user? For that matter, he'd never heard of a _kawarimi _that replaced you with a cloud of butterflies rather than a log. The Aburame would be able to control the flying insects, possibly, but this was a Genin team they were facing. Unless it was an elaborate trap …

Arashi scowled as the realization hit him. He'd been spending too long with people who could actually fight on this level, and ignored the obvious answer. A clever addition to the Genjutsu, that, forcing the opponent's mind to find plausible explanations for what they saw.

It only served to make Arashi angrier.

_Bitch will pay for this. Hope Zabuza's making her fucking suffer._ He thought

Then he closed his eyes, ignoring the stinging slashes that were being traced across his body by the circling swarm of butterflies, their razor-edged wings slicing through his skin and clothing.

There were two ways to break a Genjutsu. The first was real, physical pain. That was probably out – a Genjutsu this complex would make him _think_ that he'd inflicted the pain, maybe even deliberately dispel a layer or two and let him see what he wanted to see, but he doubted it would be broken that way.

The other way was what he was concentrating on now. It was regrettable that Kurenai had made him so angry, as he would never have gathered enough chakra to break her Genjutsu all at one otherwise. As it was, he pulled on as much as he could, just to spite the woman. Backlash from this form of Genjutsu release could be crippling to the caster.

_Good. I hope that slut chokes on her own jutsu._ Arashi snarled inside his head.

The pressure was building on his chakra coils, and he was dangerously close to overloading them. He slowly, deliberately brought his hands together in front of him.

His eyes snapped open.

"_Kai_."

A wave of chakra swept out from him, engulfing everyone within a half-mile radius. Small birds dropped from the sky, their hearts no longer beating. The lazy droning of cicadas stopped instantly as their nervous systems were fried. And the Genjutsu shattered like a pane of glass.

The entire image around him cracked, like someone had taken a sledgehammer to the air and broken it, and then shards began to fall away, revealing the true battlefield.

The three Genin had backed up around the bridge-builder, disobeying their sensei's order. Hinata was staring at him in awe, Kiba's jaw was practically on the floor, and Shino was hunched over, a hand on his head and a wince of pain twisting his features.

"Bad, bad, bad peoples. Nonononono. You don't do nasty things to others, hmm? That isn't _nice_. Nice is good, nasty is bad. Bad peoples get punished, pain, hurt, suffer, bad, _bad_, _BAD_!" Arashi shrieked.

With a convulsive jerk, he thrust one hand into the air, his first two fingers pointed into the sky. Thick fog began roiling up from the ground around them, rising above their heads and concealing the entire battlefield.

"Naughty, naughty. Now you try and find your way out! Hahahahahaha! Run and hide and shake and shiver, cower and cry! Nice, soft clouds are here to carry you 'way to dreamland. Close your eyes, yes, eyelids down, no more sight for you! Dog be neutered and bug be squished and bottle be shattered and Princess Pale Pupils will be collared for us, hmm?" He sneered, stalking forwards.

The hunt for Hinata was on.

**oXoXoXo**

Kurenai's head screamed in agony as the wave of chakra hit her, carrying fragments of her broken Genjutsu with it. She'd designed all her techniques to induce minimal backlash if broken, but it still hurt when they were. The distraction nearly lost her her left arm completely, the lapse in concentration allowing Zabuza to almost land a solid blow with the sharp of his blade.

She shook her head briefly, chasing the pain out, and dodged another sweeping strike. Zabuza was toying with her, she knew it. The first strike he'd hit her with had been using the flat of the blade, which was why she'd only suffered a broken arm, rather than being cleaved in two. Well, he'd regret taking her lightly.

She ducked under yet another wide swing, her hands together and forming seals. As she stood, she released the technique, catching Zabuza full on with it. Immediately, his eyes glazed over and, beneath the bandages, his jaw dropped, slack.

He was trapped in her Genjutsu, and now he would pay the price for underestimating a Jounin of Konoha. Kurenai pulled out a kunai in a reverse grip and circled around to Zabuza's back. A blade through his neck would finish this fight, and then she could take care of her Genin. If she could take the Demon of the Mist in this condition, three of his subordinates should be manageable, even if it wiped her chakra reserves.

She stalked forwards, kunai raised.

**oXoXoXo**

The Hyuuga girl hit like a sledgehammer, Arashi had discovered. He'd pinpointed her early on, and moved in for the capture. The problem was that her Jyuuken strikes were very nasty, and, though the fog clouded her Byakugan as well as her normal eyesight, it was nowhere near severe enough to prevent the use of her clan Taijutsu style. He'd had to blast his _tenketsu_ free once already, and the chakra drain was mounting. It wasn't particularly threatening, but the fact that he could tell he was using an appreciable amount of chakra was telling in itself. He had been playing with her, planning to wear her down with hundreds of tiny cuts, bleeding and exhausting her into submission, but time was running short and he really didn't appreciate being hit like that.

_Time to end it._ He thought.

He circled Hinata, just out of sight in the fog, and dropped into the starting stance for one of Orochimaru's specially designed incapacitation katas, snapping open a pair of chakra-restrictive handcuffs as he did so. The cuffs were standard issue to all Sound ninja – you never knew when you'd encounter a bloodline user who needed capturing, after all. They injected a drug which interfered with chakra flow, making it impossible to access one's reserves. Very useful against ninja, but they needed time to work. The turbulence needed about five minutes to build to a level where it would incapacitate the target, and a good ninja could kill their would-be abductor in that time.

Which is where the kata came in. It was a series of moves whose only purpose was to disorient and stun an enemy, finishing in a hands-free pin which could be adjusted to permit the application of the handcuffs to either wrists or ankles. Arashi was taking no chances. He had a pair of the cuffs in each hand, and was going to shackle the Hyuuga at both points.

Hinata's head turned away, and Arashi shot forwards, left hand snaking out to punch the back of her skull. He continued the movement, pivoting on his left heel and bringing his right arm around to drive an elbow into her side. His left arm swung over his head and down, sealing Hinata's left wrist in the first loop of the manacles, and then continued on, dragging her arm with it and bringing it up behind her back, forcing her to her knees. A sharp kick with his right foot planted her face down in the dirt, and his right hand snapped out to catch her left ankle in a cuff.

He dropped his left knee onto her left arm, pinning it so he could free his own left arm, and then use it to hold her head to the ground. His right hand grabbed hers at the junction of thumb and wrist and twisted, eliciting a muffled scream from her and forcing her to let him bring that arm behind her back too, quickly snapping the other cuff of the manacles around it. His right knee pressed into the back of hers, he sealed the final loop, chaining her hand and foot. A third pair of manacles were produced and used to link the first two pairs together, allowing him to lift her from the ground like a human-shaped sports bag.

"ZABUZA-SAMA!"

**oXoXoXo**

Haku had been watching the battle from the trees, concealed in the thick foliage. He and Kidoumaru were backup, in case Arashi and the Demon Brothers couldn't handle the team sent by Konoha.

_Not that it could be a problem, they have Zabuza-sama with them._ Haku mused, scratching idly at the side of his face.

Of course, this complacency meant that Haku didn't spot the danger until it was nearly too late. Kurenai's blade was already halfway to Zabuza's neck when he saw what was happening, and he flung himself from the tree with a cry.

"ZABUZA-SAMA!"

**oXoXoXo**

Kurenai's blade buried itself, a spray of blood temporarily blinding her.

This meant that she didn't see that her kunai had been intercepted by Haku. More specifically, by Haku's lower back. The strike, combined with his momentum, propelled him into Zabuza. The pain caused was enough to break the Genjutsu.

Zabuza took one look at the unconscious Haku at his feet, noting the knife buried up to the bandages in the boy's spine, and turned to Kurenai.

"Whether this is a Genjutsu or no, that was a mistake, Kurenai." He growled, his eyes bleak.

He didn't even blur. One moment he was stood over Haku, the next, he had Kurenai pinned to a tree with his sword. It had pierced clean through her entire left side, severing her arm and ruining her lung. He snapped it free, a single stroke cleaning the blade of blood, and leaned in close to the Genjutsu mistress.

"Suffer. It's a better fate than you deserve." He snarled.

He turned away suddenly, bringing his sword up to block a flurry of attacks.

"Rejoice, my Leaf friends! We, Team Hebirou of Sound, are here to save the day!" Bellowed an exuberant voice.

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**AN: Yes, I know, you all hate me :D. The plot thickens! **

**Next time on Twisted Melody: Sound save Leaf!? You read it here first, folks!**

**Vocab**

**Jyuuken – Gentle Fist, the martial art that Hyuuga use.**

**Tenketsu – the chakra points that Jyuuken seals.**


	15. Unquiet Waters, Part IV

**AN: Couple of things: Sorry for the late update, but I've had quite a bit of work to do over my Easter holiday. Updates are also likely to be slower until June, as I have end-of-year exams coming up. **

**Good news: Next chapter after this will be the end of this arc! After that come the Chuunin Exams, and you'll just have to see after that. Won't go on for much longer after that though. **

**Oh, and I went through and formatted all the chapters to be the same layout and setup.  
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**This chapter is kind of short, but is needed to set up the grand finale of this arc next chapter.**

**Also, typo that almost made it through: "He left the room with a dismissive wave, the door whispering **_**shit**_** behind him"**

**Just made me laugh when I read it and noticed what it actually said – hope you guys enjoy it too.**

**Enjoy the new chapter.**

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**Unquiet Waters, Part IV**

Shino leaned heavily on his crutches, watching the scene before him with a solemn expression. Nest to him, Kiba was stood rigidly upright, his eyes glazed and gazing into the far distance, holding a heavily-bandaged Akamaru in his arms. Hinata's absence was conspicuous, but Shino didn't want to dwell on that at the moment. Mourn for those who they knew were dead first. He couldn't process it, even two days after the fact. They'd lost their sensei. Kurenai was dead. And they were watching a Sound ninja shovel the last of the dirt back into her grave. Kurenai was dead, and her two remaining Genin were too badly injured, physically and emotionally, to even help in her burial. Instead, the team of ninja who had chased off their assailants had to do it all. They didn't even have all of Kurenai's body – the missing nin had taken off with her arm. Shino's few remaining bugs buzzed their sympathy, even though they didn't understand why their host was so upset.

"Any last words you want to say, or shall we head back?" Asked the leader of the Sound ninja, after a respectful pause.

The leader was a young man, perhaps fifteen, and stood at about five and a half feet. His shoulder-length blond hair hung in thick, heavy spikes, held back from his face by a camouflage patterned bandana that covered his head, to which was affixed a Sound symbol on a metal plate. He was dressed in simple grey ninja fatigues and heavy black boots, and wore a folded Fuuma shuriken on each hip. He was apparently called Hebirou Arashi.

The rest of the man's team were similarly attired, although the taller of the two remaining boys wore his headband over his eyes, mostly covering a vicious scar that Shino presumed ran from one side of his face to the other, straight through the boy's eyes. Not that he was the oddest member of the team – the other boy seemed to have two heads, each of which was possessed of an independent personality. The arguments might have been amusing, under different circumstances.

Shino was trying his best to hold together, for Kiba's sake, because he knew that if he broke down where the Inuzuka could see or smell it, there was very little chance the Kiba would bother to try staying alive. The Aburame felt death differently to most, their perspectives skewed by the constant cycles of life and death within them. An Aburame was aware of every birth and death within themselves, and most of them quickly became desensitized to death on the small scale. In contrast, once an Inuzuka had bonded with you, they would feel your death as heavily as though they themselves had died. The Inuzuka were a secondary clan, not due to their lack of combat prowess, but because the suicide rate of it's members was extraordinarily high, and it was a struggle to keep the clan numbers above extinction. Inuzuka bonded too hard, too fast to deal properly with the ninja lifestyle. Even worse, they formed stronger bonds with their dogs, animals who rarely lasted even twenty years. As a result, only the strongest-willed Inuzuka were permitted to become ninja, and losses such as those they had experienced on this mission often ruined their psyches so badly that they could never work as ninja again.

Shino could feel the despair rolling off Kiba as though it was a physical presence. He'd lost his sensei and one of his closest friends in a single fell blow, and it was too much for his pack-oriented mind to bear. Kiba hadn't spoken since the fight, and Shino knew that he had taken the most dangerous path, had retreated into his own head in denial of the reality of Kurenai's demise. It would have been better if his teammate had cried, screamed, even raged against anything in sight. Anything was better than this dead silence.

After a few more moments of silent contemplation, Shino began to swing himself around, facing back towards the bridge-builder's house. He placed one hand on Kiba's shoulder and exerted a soft, steady pressure until the other boy jerkily turned, still staring straight ahead. A gentle pressure to his upper back had him clumsily walking back, Shino hobbling along besides him, carefully avoiding putting any pressure on his right leg, which had been broken in six different places. He knew this because the one who did it had held him down and very carefully described exactly where and how the breaks were going to occur, and then proceeded to snap his leg like a dry twig. It was only the interception of the Sound team that had saved his life.

Unseen behind them, Arashi smirked at Tayuya and Sakon. Kimimaro didn't need to have eyes to tell what Arashi was doing, he could practically _hear_ the smug grin.

**oXoXoXo**

Zabuza scowled at Arashi across the hospital bed, managing the expression well despite having no eyebrows to scowl with. Haku was lying on the bed, upper body propped up with pillows, calmly peeling an apple.

"For the last time, I don't care what standard procedure is. Haku is still alive. He can still do what your boss wants him for." Zabuza growled.

"But he's crippled, sensei. Kurenai severed most of his spinal column just above his hips. He'll never walk again, and he's a liability." Arashi countered, fingering his kunai.

"You are _not_ going to kill him and seal the corpse in a scroll. Haku can take care of himself, paralyzed or no. He's at no risk here, not from the rabble Gatou hires, and we can hide him somewhere when we enact the last part of the mission. I refuse to let you do this." Zabuza leaned forwards, one hand on the hilt of his sword, to punctuate his point.

Arashi sighed in frustration, leaning back in his chair and throwing his arms up. "Fine. But he's your responsibility." He muttered.

Zabuza simply snorted in derision.

"Two days, remember. We'll be all in place by then, and we can stage the last act in this little play of ours, hmm?" Arashi chuckled as he stood from his seat. He left the room with a dismissive wave, the door whispering shut behind him.

**oXoXoXo**

Tazuna's house was what one would expect from a poor bridge builder – ramshackle, run-down, and badly in need of a fresh coat of paint. It was, however, very homely – it was obviously loved and cared for by those who lived in it.

Like Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami. It was quite difficult to concentrate on his work with Sakon drooling like that all the time. He'd needed a sharp reminder about the image they had to give off to get the job done to prevent him from causing more than a little trouble. As it was, the boy had to simply undress her mentally, as opposed to what he really wanted to do.

But, as Oro-nii had said, they needed to give Tazuna a good impression. The man was, for all intents and purposes, the Daimyo of Wave, as the country was too small to warrant an actual Daimyo, the most influential citizens did the job of one. And Tazuna was nothing if not influential. And a drunkard, but that just made things easier.

Arashi was currently sat on the walkway around the house, sharing a bottle of sake (or fifteen) with aforementioned bridge builder. The man stank, not just of alcohol, and Arashi could tell he hadn't changed his clothes for at least two weeks. No, he had to ignore all of that.

"Aah, Tazuna-san, it was very fortuitous that we chanced upon your group when we did. Alas that we could not have come to your aid sooner." Arashi said, one hand resting over his heart, his face composed in a sympathetic mask. He was hamming it up, but he needed to play the role of spoilt, naive nobleman.

"'M just glad y'got to us at all, lad. We were goners, that's fer sure!" Tazuna replied, raising his sake saucer in a slightly unsteady toast.

"It must have been Fate herself that bought us together, Tazuna-san. My group was on its way here to see if the people of Wave needed aid." Arashi replied, waving his own saucer in an extravagant response.

"Aid? Hah! We need aid, lad, but unless you're willin' to work for air and sickly fish, we don't got the means to pay you."

"Tazuna-san, it wounds me that you think I would dangle such an offer before your eyes, only to snatch it away once more. What Sound wishes is simply for a few deals worked out with your people." Arashi offered, looking slightly affronted.

"Wha' kind o' deals?"

"Well, for a start …"

**oXoXoXo**

Gatou looked up at the sharp knock on his door. He didn't bother asking who is was, as whoever was there had been able to get through many layers of guards, and, most fearsome of all, his secretary. So they must have either been a powerful warrior, or someone he had standing orders to let through. Since he had heard no combat, and the person on the other side of the door was knocking politely rather than attempting to stab him to death, he reasoned that it must be the second case.

"Enter." He ordered.

The person on the other side of the door turned out to be the mad Mist-nin in Zabuza's employ. What was he called? Oh, yes, Ichirou.

"Please, come in, Ichirou-san. What can I do for you?" Gatou said. He felt it was wise to keep on this particular ninja's good side, as he doubted the madman would care that there were half a dozen guards within spitting distance if he was offended.

"Yes, yes, good, hello, greetings, yes, Gatou-sama, offer, hmm, interested?" Ichirou gibbered.

Gatou smirked. Mad though the ninja was, he had some interesting ideas, and was entertaining to listen to if nothing else. "I'm listening, Ichirou-san."

"Good, good, Zabuza, yes? Prickly little pricey thorn, no? Perhaps wants too many shiny, pretty coins. Yes, pretty coins, shiny, nice, good, get nice things, pretty, shiny coins buy pretty, shiny girls, hmm? Want pretty shiny girls, yes, need lots of coins, hmm? More coins for me when Zabuza not here, no, yes, no? Have friend who thinks same, yes, he says we can do it, hmm? Knife in the back much harder to see than knife in the front, no? We go, move, yes, move, attack stench-ridden flea-mongering builder of bridges in two days, hmm? When he attacks he leaves holes, big, tasty holes, not a good idea for a man with no friends behind him, yes? We want some of the coins, money, cash, yes, shiny sparkly glittering. Less than Zabuza. Save you some coins, keeps spiky thorny icky Zabuza out of your way, hmm? You need to distract him, yes, no, yes, mercenaries come cheap, here, yes, pincer from two sides, hmm? Sound team on left, us on right, Zabuza in middle, with no pretty girly boy for help, no, no, no more good friends for Zabuza. Demon Brothers will not be problem, weak, too weak. When it is all over, yes, maybe I be too weak to stop you too, no? Then you keep all your shiny coins, and I keep none of my pretty shimmering red lifeblood. What happens happens. But any way you look, see, look, glance, eyes, pretty glimmering eyes, yes, want them, want them, yes! No, look, yes, see. Less coins you lose, however you try. Unless I kill you first, spray your dampwetwarmsalty blood over the cold thirsty rocks, but no, coins better than blood, yes? Buy more with coins, blood just gets you dirty and smells bad, bad, bad boy, no, NO, good, I'm a good boy! BAD! GOOD! Wait, wait, no, no, nO!" Ichirou ranted, falling to his knees and clawing frantically at his face.

Gatou simply sat there and stared for a few moments, trying to work out exactly what the mad ninja had just said. He offered to betray Zabuza when they went to kill the bridge builder, stabbing him in the back when he was distracted by the team of newly-arrived Sound ninja. He also wanted Gatou to bring some mercenaries in to pincer the Demon of the Mist from behind so that he would be even more distracted. Furthermore, he and his friend – who Gatou assumed was the odd six-armed boy – were asking for less money than Zabuza wanted. And judging from what Ichirou had said, they fully expected Gatou to betray them, and attempt to kill them off, and were prepared for that. Gatou liked the plan, he liked it a lot.

He stood from his chair and walked around to the still-kneeling Ichirou, who raised his face, blood trickling down his cheeks.

"Good boy, Ichirou." Gatou said, patting the boy's head with a smile.

Arashi smiled back, the wide, toothy grin the first genuine thing he had expressed since entering the office.

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**AN: Next chapter, Battle at the Bridge! The plot will all be revealed, and everyone will come off worse from it. Except Arashi and his team, of course.**


	16. Unquiet Waters, Part V

**AN: Well, this is the last chapter until June, so enjoy.**

**Also, thanks for all the reviews. I really appreciate feedback on my work ****.**

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**Unquiet Waters, Part V**

Kidoumaru was relieved. They were finally out of that tower, that miserable steel-and-concrete monstrosity that Gatou called his headquarters. Not only that, but he was already on his way back to Sound. Arashi had replaced him with a shadow clone, and sent Kidoumaru on ahead with Hinata. Kidoumaru was disguised as a young farmer, in patched and ragged clothes, his four extra arms concealed inside the baggy shirt, his hair loose around his face and his head covered with a broad straw hat.

Talking of the girl, she was currently walking, slightly unsteadily, beside Kidoumaru. Arashi had changed how she looked dramatically, using some medical jutsu to make her hair grow, then dying it blonde. He'd also wrapped bandages around her eyes and splattered them with blood, making it look like she had some horrible injury. He'd also applied a skin dye to her, turning her a dark brown rather than her original pale white. In short, the girl currently walking next to Kidoumaru, holding tightly to his hand, looked completely unrecognizable.

Of course, her clothes had also been changed, the baggy and conservative outfit swapped for a ragged peasant costume to match his own. The reason that the girl was quiet and compliant lay on her right wrist – to anyone who didn't know its purpose, the device appeared to be a plain steel bracelet, but it was a more permanent version of the manacles Arashi had used to capture the Hyuuga less than a week ago.

The bracelet injected a cocktail of drugs into the girl's system, leaving her incapable of using chakra, very compliant, and perpetually confused. A single command from anyone would have her sluggishly attempting to fulfill it, if she could still understand what was being said. The drugs were very powerful, and held no small risk, but Orochimaru-sama didn't need the girl for her brain. _Besides_, Kidoumaru thought, _she'll probably be better off if she can't think any more._ He held no illusions as to her fate. She would have her eyes taken, and then she would be used to produce as many children as possible. Oh, it wouldn't be too brutal – Orochimaru-sama wouldn't want to risk his investment. But the girl would never be free again.

Kidoumaru shuddered slightly, glad that Arashi wasn't there to see him. Kidoumaru knew what he and his team did was wrong. He knew that, if there was an afterlife, it would not be fun for him. But he was fulfilling his role. He knew he wasn't the main character in this game. He wasn't even in the main character's party. He was a miniboss at best, one of Arashi's squad. Heh. Even Arashi wasn't that great, perhaps the boss you had to take out at the end of the first disk. Orochimaru could fit the role of the big bad guy easily, and Kidoumaru was determined that this game would be one that the heroes wouldn't win.

So he played his part, all-around core to the team. He would kill, and though he took no real pleasure out of taking someone else's life he could fake it well enough. He could leave the torturing to Sakon and Arashi. He would offer support for the others if they needed someone to talk to, someone who could just listen. Arashi couldn't do that, for all of his twisted charisma. He would help assess a situation, though Kimimaro could do it better and faster than him. He was the solid rock that any plan could rely upon – they all knew he would get the job done, exactly as he was told. He wouldn't go and blow it to pieces if it went wrong, like Arashi or Sakon. He wouldn't ditch it and come back later from a different angle, like Tayuya. He wouldn't even keep going, ignoring any threats until the mission was completed, as Kimimaro was wont to. He'd calmly and carefully work out how to get around the setback, and then he'd do so.

Kidoumaru knew Arashi was a vile, manipulative bastard. He also knew that Arashi knew he knew, and the other boy seemed to respect him for it. He didn't only see the layer that Arashi showed him. Sakon saw his team leader as a brutish monster, someone whose only interests were killing and red-headed women. Someone to look up to, in Sakon's case, as Arashi was better at everything than him. Tayuya saw him as someone like her, broken and warped inside but hiding it behind a tough façade. Someone who almost hated what they'd become, but couldn't bring themselves to do so, because they knew the alternatives. Kimimaro knew, too, that Arashi was manipulative, but he didn't realize that the soft, friendly side that Arashi showed him was, itself, a mask, a fake, a disguise. Kidoumaru knew that Arashi would kill Kimimaro without a moment's hesitation.

The problem was, Kidoumaru didn't know what the young team leader was actually like. The way the boy switched between masks, layered them on top of each other so that everyone saw something different, meant that it was nigh impossible to catch a glimpse of the boy's true self. Kidoumaru knew that Arashi had deep secrets, darker by far than any of the rest of the team. He knew that the boy was essentially Orochimaru-sama's son, but their relationship was cold and distant for the most part. He knew that Arashi's love of killing was not faked, as he'd seen the boy's eyes after kills, and the elation dancing within them could be nothing but genuine, and it escaped nobody's notice that Arashi sometimes needed to adjust his trousers after particularly bloody fights. Kidoumaru guessed that a lot of what the other boy said was simple chaff, there to deflect and distract, even when he seemed to be talking bluntly.

But what did this tell him about the boy? He had secrets? He was a ninja, they all had secrets. He was distant from his father-figure? Well, Orochimaru was hardly approachable. He enjoyed fights a little too much? That was practically normal for a Sound ninja.

Kidoumaru wasn't stupid, either. He knew that the reason Arashi treated him with mocking respect was because it was a way to manipulate him. He knew that he was as broken as any of the other members of the team, and he knew that Arashi knew why. He knew that the six-armed boy had asked Orochimaru to remove all of his memories from before he became a Sound ninja, that or kill him outright. It had mostly worked, but Kidoumaru still feared sleeping, even if he couldn't remember the nightmares. He still found the oddest things terrifying – the scent of roses, the sound of children laughing, the sight of a shrine, all of these things still had him shaking in fear.

He sighed once more. They had a long way to travel to the rendezvous point, especially moving as non-ninja. That was the problem with capturing someone trained in the use of chakra – you couldn't seal them into a scroll without perfectly matching the seal to their chakra patterns at the moment of sealing. As chakra patterns constantly changed once you could access your chakra, this made it impossible to write a seal capable of storing someone who could do so.

Ah well. It was beautiful weather, and he was on his way back home after a long and boring mission. The team would definitely get a reward for bringing in the Hyuuga as well.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi grinned as he and his team approached the bridge, ostensibly protecting Tazuna. Today was the day that all the plans came together. He'd replaced himself and Kidoumaru with shadow clones in Gatou's headquarters, and had spent a day preparing two of his stored corpses to look very similar to the two disguises they had been wearing. Sure, the extra arms on Kidoumaru's double wouldn't hold up to scrutiny, but they didn't need to. They just needed to look like corpses for a few moments before they were incinerated. This didn't stop him from warming the bodies to the right temperature, nor prevent him from placing enough anchor seals to allow him to puppet their bodies fairly realistically.

The two corpses in question were currently hidden near the bridge, a shadow clone with each of them. Arashi's team were all ready for the plan, and they had bought the bug ninja with them. They needed a witness that Konoha would believe, and the dog-boy was still in no condition to be relied upon. Besides, the bug ninja seemed more useful in that respect anyway.

As they reached the bridge, Tazuna gasped in shock, and the ninja all dropped into defensive positions. Thin streamers of mist shrouded the construction site, but not enough to prevent the shadowy forms of slain construction workers to be seen. As the morning breeze picked up, the mist dissipated, revealing Zabuza, bloody blade in hand. With him were Arashi's disguised shadow clones.

"I've come to fulfill my contract, old man." Zabuza declared, pointing his sword at the bridge builder and sneering.

"You will not consider negotiation, Zabuza-sama? Sound would be honoured to have the use of a man of your talents." Arashi offered.

"Not that I'm not interested, brat, but I can't renege on a contract. It looks bad. So, if you'll just let me take out the bridge builder, we can talk later." Zabuza growled, drawing the forefinger of his free hand across his throat.

"My apologies, then, as I too, cannot break my contracts." Arashi replied, bowing politely.

With that , the two groups of ninja flew at each other, weapons flashing and the ring of steel on steel carrying through the air. It seemed as though neither group had the other hand, with Arashi and Kimimaro squaring off against Zabuza, the blond ninja holding a massive shuriken in each hand, the blinded boy lashing out with long, thin blades. Tayuya faced Kidoumaru's double, each throwing kunai and shuriken at each other, and both of them deflecting the attacks with millimeters to spare. Sakon was attempting to tear into Arashi's double, wickedly sharp kunai whipping in random patterns, trying to catch the capering foe.

To a Jounin, the fight would have seemed parodic. There was little chakra being used, the monstrous Zabuza was hardly even trying, and none of the attacks aimed at either of the clones would be able to quite hit. However, it was incredibly fast and dangerous looking to the civilians, and Shino, though a skilled Genin, didn't have the experience to tell that something was not right.

This went on for several minutes, the battle raging up and down the length of the bridge, until a shout rang out from the nearly-finished side of the bridge.

"Looks like you can't even deal with a few brats, Zabuza. Why should I pay you?" Gatou bellowed.

Behind the tiny fat man was a veritable horde of rough-looking mercenaries. They were sneering and posturing, but all the ninja there could practically smell the fear rolling off them. They obviously hadn't been told about the fact that they'd be facing real enemies.

The battle paused, both sides backing off to face the new threat.

"So you've decided to betray me, Gatou? Break your contract?" Zabuza yelled.

"What can I say? I'm a businessman. You would cost me far more than these mercenaries. Besides, no-one is going to know about this little confrontation. Everyone will call me a hero for killing the Devil Zabuza after he heartlessly butchered this village." Gatou mocked, holding one hand over his heart and putting on a sickly sweet smile.

"As if your punks can deal wi-" Zabuza began, but was cut off as Arashi's double sank a kunai into his back.

"Hahahahaha, silly silly Zabuza, why trust, hmm? Think that I don't want to be free? You shouldn't, no, no, shouldn't trust. We are little traitors, no? Why we left, yes? Betrayal? Foolish Zabuza. Like giving us pretty little white-eyes. Cloud make good deals, hmm? Far more money for two than for six. She's already gone, yes, no more little pale princess, lots of pretty shiny coins, sparkly gems. More than her weight in gold, her father would be so proud." The double sneered, then kicked Zabuza from his blade.

Only to look shocked as the man splashed against the bridge, a puddle of water forming where the badly-injured ninja should have been.

"Shit, water cl-" Yelled Kidoumaru's double, before Zabuza's blade hit him in a descending arc.

The boy was cleaved clean in half, blood splattering into a pool as the corpse collapsed. Arashi's clones had replaced the doubles with the fake corpses just as Zabuza's clone was dispelled, counting on the distraction to draw everyone's attention and give the real Arashi time to attach the chakra strings. The voice had been supplied by a clone throwing its voice.

Arashi's corpse double didn't even have time to react (or so it seemed) as Zabuza's blade swept out and neatly bisected him, chopping straight through his ribcage and flinging the top half of the body off the bridge.

Zabuza turned to face Gatou and his men.

"You broke the contract." He said, voice cold and dead.

"Whu…whu…huh?" Spluttered Gatou.

"You. Broke. The. Contract." Zabuza repeated, each word a sharp hiss.

Gatou looked at the bloodied ninja and plastered a fake smile on his face.

"Sure..surely we can solve this, Zabuza-dono? I can pay you more! It wouldn't be a problem! Name your price!" Gatou said, his voice high-pitched with panic.

"My deepest apologies, Gatou, but I believe that I have prior clam to him. We did, after all, agree that when your contract was over you would be amenable to negotiations, no, Zabuza-sama?" Arashi said, smirking unpleasantly.

Gatou looked suddenly terrified. He'd spotted what symbol the stocky blond was wearing on his headband. He wasn't stupid. He knew he'd been stepping on Sound's toes.

"Besides which, I have a mission to complete." Arashi said.

Before anyone could respond, one of his massive folding shuriken had left his hand, edges enhanced with the wind chakra he'd forced through it. The weapon screamed through the air briefly, before cutting straight through Gatou and everyone directly behind him. Arashi pulled back with his outstretched hand, sweeping his arm as he did so, and the shuriken returned, slaughtering another swathe of mercenaries before coming to rest gently in his hand once more.

"I believe that your contract is well and truly severed. Would you care for some tea?" Arashi asked, as though nothing had happened, bowing low before the missing nin.

**oXoXoXo**

Shino was furious. They had fought against this man, this monster, and he had killed their sensei. His then-allies had kidnapped and sold Hinata to Cloud, the village that had been trying to get Hyuuga eyes for over a decade, and there she would suffer, horribly, for the rest of what he could only hope would be a short life.

And that bastard was sat here in front of him, splattered in the blood of his own men, sipping tea. Tea. As though this thing deserved to be treated as a human. He could feel his hands shaking with rage. It had been all he could do to make sure Kiba had been safely tucked away and didn't see this. He didn't want to lose another teammate to this creature, and Kiba would have attacked him without reservation.

Arashi, the man he thought was a reasonable, pleasant individual, was sat there, grinning and laughing with the murderer. The man that he had respected a little for his control and prowess, was talking to the man directly responsible for the death of his sensei and the fate of his teammate.

Shino blinked back tears and fought to control himself. He knew that, regardless of his feelings, the ninja world would hold none of this against Zabuza. He had done his utmost to finish his contract, only to be betrayed by his own men and his employer. He had seemed to hold little interest in Hinata, probably only seeing her as a nice bonus to the mission. And Shino knew that, had his team been in Arashi's position, Kurenai would be attempting to recruit Zabuza for Konoha.

It didn't mean he had to like it.

But he had to be there, as a witness. The Hokage would need a report, and Shino was not going to dishonour his team's losses by making that report incomplete. He was already certain that Arashi had made some sort of deal with Tazuna, but he didn't know what the deal entailed, and that would bother him for a while.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi sipped at his tea, chatting comfortably with Zabuza, simply waiting until he thought he'd spent enough time to justify leaving. He did, after all, already have Zabuza on his side, and had done since before they'd even met the Konoha shinobi. The only ones who'd died didn't matter, and the only injury was non-fatal. He'd got two bloodlimit users out of the mission, a new sensei, and had completed the original mission. Everyone knew that Gatou had been taken down by Sound.

Finally, the conversation had finished. He and Zabuza had come to an agreement, and the man was to travel with them to Sound to be inducted as a Jounin.

Arashi stood, and everyone else around the table followed suit.

"It was my honour and pleasure to help your country, Tazuna-san. I hope that Wave and Sound may have a long and profitable relationship." He said, bowing deeply.

Tazuna smiled at the young man, returning the bow, then clapped him on the shoulder.

"Your ninja have done us a great service, and in return you have offered us things that benefit both of our countries. The honour was ours." He chuckled.

Turning to Shino, Arashi bowed once more.

"My deepest apologies to you and your teammate, Aburame-san. We were too slow to prevent your losses, and then we didn't even avenge their deaths for you. It is not personal, but politics makes us all monsters." Arashi said with a sad smile.

Shino nodded in reply, slightly mollified. At least the man knew what he felt about the whole matters.

"I hope that you will see us in a better light when we meet again for the Chuunin exams." Arashi added.

Shino's eyes widened in shock. This man was only a Genin? If that was true, he would eat his sunglasses. He said nothing, however, merely nodded again, hoping for Zabuza to leave soon.

His wishes were granted as the Sound team, plus their new sensei, left Tazuna's run-down house and took to the trees, blurring away out of sight.

**oXoXoXo**

Kidoumaru was sat with his back against a tree, eating a very tasty ration bar and drinking cold tea. He had already fed Hinata, which had been a chore in itself, as the girl couldn't even manage to bring a cup to her lips. They had reached the rendezvous point about an hour ago, and had been joined by the Demon Brothers, one of them carrying Haku, about half an hour later.

They had enjoyed a quiet, cold lunch after setting up perimeter traps and setting a watch rotation. Haku had protested that he could take a turn on watch, but the elder Demon Brother had simply ruffled his hair and scolded him that he was supposed to be recovering. Kidoumaru agreed with his assessment, the other boy should be careful until he had fully healed. He didn't want to get infected, or damage his spine even more.

With a rush of wind, the temporary camp suddenly had quite a few more visitors. Arashi and his team had arrived, with Zabuza, and entered the camp through the correct path to allow them through the traps. Of course, as Arashi had designed most of the things, it was only a given that he would spot them.

Kidoumaru smiled as he saw the rest of his team. Sure, Kimimaro was an asshole, Sakon could be cruel and thoughtless, and Tayuya swore far too much, but they were the closest thing he had to a family. He'd missed them while he'd been alone with Arashi.

"We move out in fifteen, people. Get ready, wipe all traces." Zabuza snapped, and everyone sprung to obey his orders.

Except Arashi, who took over guard duty of Hinata, but then, he was the boss, and he had done the most work this time. Kidoumaru figured that he was permitted a little slacking.

**oXoXoXo**

"Hey, Oro-nii, I bought you a present." Arashi grinned as they were greeted by the Snake Sannin, pushing Hinata forwards.

"Not my usual taste, you should …" The man broke off as Arashi removed the bandages from around the girl's eyes. "Oh, now that is certainly a good gift. A very good gift indeed …"

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**AN: Next chapter, Chuunin exams start!**


	17. Interlude: FatherSon Bonding

**AN: Double update! **

**This interlude is thanks to **_**apimpnamedKyuubi**_**, who suggested that I do a chapter dealing with Arashi and Orochimaru's current relationship. I realized that there'd been practically no interaction between the two for about six chapters, so here it is. It falls between the Wave arc and the Chuunin exams. Enjoy!**

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"Scalpel."

"Scalpel."

A pause, the only noise in the room the faint sound of breathing and the scrape of metal on bone as Orochimaru cut an I shape into the subject's torso.

"Pins."

"Pins."

A second pause, the silence broken by the soft noise of metal piercing flesh as the skin was peeled back from the subject's chest and pinned out of the way.

"Bonesaw."

"Bonesaw."

The rasping grate of jagged teeth on bone as the saw ripped through the subject's ribcage.

Arashi loved helping out his Oro-nii in the lab. They spent so little time together nowadays, since Arashi was often out on missions and Orochimaru spent most of his time traveling from base to base to keep an eye on all his projects. Standing here next to his mentor, Arashi felt like he was a six-year-old once more, stood on a stool so that he could see what his big brother was doing. Even back then, he had handed his Oro-nii the tools he'd needed. He'd watched with fascination as Orochimaru parted flesh and cracked bone, injected and transplanted and amputated. His first real lessons had been in a lab much like this, as Orochimaru taught him what he needed to know in order to be a competent assistant.

His Oro-nii was the only person to ever spend so much time and attention on him. Arashi had received little attention as a child, his only real human contact the Hokage, and even then, the Old Man had been busy running a village. Oh, there had been various masked ANBU guarding him, but they never spoke, and he wasn't supposed to have noticed them anyway. Orochimaru had changed all that.

He had spent time with Arashi, never ignoring him, never refusing to answer a question, never denying Arashi the attention he so desperately craved. He had taught Arashi all sorts of things, from the right way to hold a kunai to the correct order in which one used cutlery in a formal situation. He had patiently explained things to Arashi until the boy had understood, and had praised Arashi's successes. The failures had been punished, but Arashi respected his Oro-nii even more for that. After all, if his failures hadn't been punished, how would he know not to repeat them? Orochimaru had explained that to him the first time, and Arashi had borne it in mind every time he failed since.

His Oro-nii didn't even need to punish him any more. Arashi would pre-empt the orders, and turn himself over to the torture division before Orochimaru could tell him to. Of course, he assigned himself punishments harsher than his Oro-nii would, but that was just because he was always so ashamed of having failed his Oro-nii. He knew that _he_ wouldn't like it if someone failed him, he would be disappointed in them, especially if he had invested as much time and effort in them as his Oro-nii had in him.

Arashi forced his thoughts away from punishment. He hadn't done anything wrong for quite a while now, not since that fiasco with the Rock ninja base. He returned his attention to the operating table.

"Say, Oro-nii, who _is_ this we have on the slab? I don't recognize their face." Arashi commented, observing his mentor's careful actions with detached interest.

"Hmm? Oh, he is a spy. Sent to investigate us by Waterfall." Orochimaru replied absently, his concentration on the surgery he was performing.

"Why do Waterfall care? No-one's interested in their armpit of the world." Arashi commented, genuinely intrigued.

"Our subject here," Orochimaru patted the man's head fondly, "revealed that to us when we persuaded him it would be in his best interests. They are worried about the recent increase in activity all around. Another Great War would likely see them crushed, and they wish to avoid any conflict. This spy was simply unfortunate enough to be picked for Sound. They are infiltrating every Hidden Village they can."

Arashi laughed. "Well, that's one way to go about it. A stupid way, but hey, when you've got such a bad set of choices, you pick the one you think will damage you the least, hey? Not that this was their best choice. They shoulda just picked one of the five big Hidden Villages and allied."

"Indeed, Ara-chan, that would be a sensible option. The Waterfall ninja are, sadly, self-obsessed and prideful. An alliance not on their terms would be intolerable." Orochimaru answered, fishing around inside the man's body cavity.

Arashi leaned forwards to get a better look at what the Snake Sannin was doing. He had his hand under the still-breathing lungs of his subject. A moment later, the hand was withdrawn.

"Needle and thread." Orochimaru ordered.

"Needle and thread." Replied Arashi, passing the tools over.

Orochimaru delved once more into the chest cavity of the unconscious man, deft fingers stitching something into place behind the subject's left lung. Arashi couldn't see what it was, but could make an educated guess.

"Remote activated?" He asked.

"Almost. Self-activated." Orochimaru replied, a self-satisfied grin on his face.

"Ouch," Arashi winced theatrically. "Drugs, jutsu, or the hard way?"

"Take a guess, Ara-chan. How would you do it?"

Arashi smirked viciously. "The hard way, every time. More successful, more fun, and best of all they have to actually want to go along with you."

Orochimaru returned the grin, narrow eyes closing into pleased slits. "Kukuku. I have taught you well, Ara-chan. Now, what kind of present do you think I have given this fine young ninja? You get three guesses."

Arashi's smirk widened. "Personally, I always enjoy a good explosion, but that's far too simple, and not particularly effective. Sends a nice message, but perhaps we don't want to send one." He gave himself a mental pat on the back as Orochimaru nodded approvingly. "A slow-release contact poison could work. Especially if you condition him to come into skin-to-skin contact with as many people as he can, but, again, kills the carrier too quick." Another approving nod, this time accompanied with a sly grin. "Carrier… now there's an idea. Standard procedure requires a medical check on all returning ninja, to ensure they aren't infected with any unpleasant diseases. But if it only activates after he's already passed the check… That's pretty good, Oro-nii. I like it."

Orochimaru simply gave Arashi a lazy wink, a sign that he was right, but missing something. His guess had been good enough to pass the test, but he hadn't managed to see the whole picture. Orochimaru was still busy stitching away inside the man, and Arashi peered into the cavity once more.

"Oh. Oh, wow. If you weren't already my hero, Oro-nii, you would be now." Arashi said, slightly awed.

The Sannin had hooked up his special device to the man's chakra system. Arashi could now tell just what it was, from the special cables that were still being stitched into place. It was a very special object, the product of some of Orochimaru's more twisted experiments. The Snake Sannin had always had an obsession with bloodlimits, and the thing that had been stitched into place was one of the fruits of his research in that area. It would simply show up as part of the body's healthy tissue to a medical scan, and required invasive surgery to spot.

Orochimaru had dissected dozens to create it. The Aburame contributed the greatest amount to it as it was, at its heart, a hive. The Akimichi had been almost as important, their inherent growth rate and jutsu to enhance size taken to pieces, warped, and implanted into the object. It fed on the target's chakra system, growing rapidly within them until the host was nothing more than a skin sack held together by the hive of monsters. Once the host was finally emptied of everything, the creatures deserted it, fuelling their escape with the last scraps of the host's body. The tiny beasts were mutant cousins to the bugs the Aburame used, adjusted by Orochimaru to fit his purposes.

The Aburame bugs took chakra. These scuttling monstrosities injected plague.

Of course, there were drawbacks to doing this. The hive implant was insanely difficult to produce, and took a great deal of time and effort. It required a living Aburame hive, Akimichi tissue, and a great number of expensive and rare drugs. Not only that, but the resultant implant produced only one queen when it fully matured, and this queen required a healthy, living human to spawn a new hive. Healthy, living humans were in small supply when the hive fully matured. And, last but not least, the plague bugs couldn't be used anywhere near an Aburame, as the changes to them were not enough to prevent the bug ninja from taking control over them.

All in all, it was a very specific weapon, and the only reason it could be used in this case was because of Waterfall's insular nature. With any luck, the entire Hidden Village would be a charnel house within the month.

Arashi felt a trickle of drool drip from the corner of his ear-to-ear grin, but couldn't contain the ravenous excitement that such an idea roused in him.

"Damn, Oro-nii, you made me hungry. Promise me we can go see what happened after the Chuunin exams, I wanna admire your masterpiece in action." He complained, his voice a desperate whine.

Orochimaru chuckled softly to himself. He'd shaped the boy well. Perhaps a little too well, judging from the over-eager expression on Arashi's face, but better a tool too desperate for slaughter than one which balked from bloodshed. The only problem was that Arashi's lust for violence was not restrained to the battlefield. The boy couldn't have any major interaction with another without damaging them in some way. It was like a compulsion. He'd be calmly chatting with Kimimaro, and the conversation would suddenly veer into dangerous waters with a single ill-phrased comment from the bone-user. That would be all the provocation Arashi needed to slam the other boy into a wall, often hard enough to crack bone.

His interactions with others all followed a similar pattern, though Arashi rarely bothered trying to justify his actions as he did with Kimimaro. Once you had been around the boy long enough you could tell when he was about to inflict pain. His eyes would dull slightly, he would react a little slower, and then, usually about a minute later, someone would be screaming in a pool of their own blood. The boy had managed to restrain himself so far on missions, but he was getting worse and worse. It seemed like only a matter of time before he started killing ninja as offhandedly as he snuffed out civilians.

It was hard enough finding help these days, and Arashi did nothing to help Orochimaru's reputation as an employer. The maids now stayed clear of his rooms while he was in the village. Orochimaru though it was sensible of them. Arashi had a tendency of viewing his rooms as his eminent domain, and anything or anyone within them was considered his property. The lucky ones escaped with heavy bruising or a dislocation. The unlucky ones ended up in Arashi's corpse scroll. The rumour was that if you did as he asked, he wouldn't hurt you as much, but Orochimaru knew that was nonsense. The only real factors affecting Arashi's violence were how recently he'd last seriously injured someone, and how recently he'd last eaten.

Orochimaru chuckled again at the thought that any girl seeking to woo his protégé would need to supply the boy with an alternating stream of living targets and cooked meals. They'd also need to be very, very tough. He supposed that Kabuto's self-healing technique would probably also be a necessity for any girl trying for Arashi. Talk about a high maintenance boyfriend…

Orochimaru wondered if perhaps he shouldn't have tampered with the seal on the boy's stomach, but dismissed the idea. Even if the Fox's influence was a factor in Arashi's erratic and dangerous behaviour, the boy had shown that he could still control himself when it was required of him. If Orochimaru began reducing the number of things his ninja could get away with against innocent civilians and each other, he had no doubts that Arashi would obey his wishes.

A gentle tap on the shoulder stirred Orochimaru from his reverie.

"Oro-nii, you finished with this guy five minutes ago. You've been staring at the wall. You been getting enough sleep?" Arashi asked, concern tingeing his voice.

"My apologies, Ara-chan. I was consumed in thought. Shall we go and get some food?" Orochimaru replied.

He always knew how to deflect Arashi's attention.


	18. Convergence, Part I

**AN: Double Update! Make sure you read the interlude, one chapter back. Also, supermassive chapter, so enjoy it. 18 pages in Word. That's a lot.**

**Just a quick question – would people be interested in reading a story about Hinata's imprisonment? It would be heavily psychological, and would show her as Arashi's "pet project", a soft practice target for his manipulations.**

**About the whole artificial insemination thing – I was considering it, but it would make everything a little too easy, especially in the "obtaining of bloodline children" area.**

**Quick note – Hakama = trousers worn over a kimono, Haori = thigh length open jacket similar to a kimono and worn over one.**

**OK, Chuunin exam time. Expect the unexpected. This is where everything comes together.**

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**Convergence, Part I**

Arashi's team stood before the great gates of Konoha. Sakon was looking up at them with a mixture of awe and distain, Kimimaro was carefully _not_ looking at them in an effort to conceal his new eyes, and Arashi was blithely unconcerned. Zabuza was too busy shuffling through his paperwork to bother taking in the sights.

"Hey, Zabuza-sensei, I think you put our passes in that pocket." Arashi commented, pointing at the man's backpack.

Zabuza grunted acquiescence and tugged out the relevant pieces of documentation. Security about foreign ninja was tight enough as it was, but Zabuza of the Bloody Mist warranted special attention. Especially now that he was no longer a missing nin, according to his new forehead protector, engraved with a musical note and set at a jaunty angle on his forehead.

The gate guard took in the infamous man in front of him. Zabuza was no longer wearing his usual clothing, the tattered remnants of his old Seven Swordsmen uniform, and was instead wearing tough black-and-grey camouflage trousers, a similarly patterned mask, which covered his face and neck, and sturdy black boots. He topped off the outfit with a mesh-armour shirt and steel forearm protectors. His massive sword was slung casually across his back.

"Alright, it says here that you're entering a Genin team for Sound this year. I'll need their paperwork too." The guard said, face still stuck in a bored expression.

Zabuza grunted once more and waved his charges forwards. Arashi approached the desk first, his papers already in hand.

"Hebirou Arashi, Sound Genin…" The guard muttered, alternately checking down the information and observing the boy in front of him.

Arashi was dressed in an expensive, burnt umber kimono and black hakama, while on his feet he wore a pair of white socks with a solid pair of geta sandals. Over this was an elaborate haori, embroidered with raging thunderclouds over a roiling sea, lightning linking the two through inky black sky. The boy's hair was bulled back into a tight bun, with the Sound forehead protector firmly in place around his forehead.

"Age… 15. Is this all correct?" The guard asked out of politeness. Even if it wasn't, he had to let the boy in. His paperwork was legitimate.

Arashi simply nodded, and was followed by his second teammate, who was slightly shorter than him. This one was the oddest of the team, dressed in a similar manner to Arashi save that his kimono was pale blue and his haori embroidered with a decadent castle surrounded by armies. His forehead protector was, once again, worn in its proper place. The odd thing was that the boy seemed to have two heads, both of which were heavily made up, with the odd purple lipstick he used standing out the most. The guard gave a mental shrug. Kids nowadays…

"Alright, says here you have a bloodlimit. No use of it except during the exams." The guard said, waving Sakon on to stand with his sensei and the first boy.

The last boy waved his paperwork in the guard's direction, smacking him in the face with it accidentally.

"What's wrong with you, brat, you blind!" The guard yelled, standing up angrily.

Kimimaro smirked and pointed to his face, tilting his head back so that his hair fell out of the way, revealing a forehead protector strapped tightly around his eyes, the edges of vicious scarring revealed around the edges of the cloth.

"Yes."

The guard slumped back into his seat, muttering under his breath, and snatched the papers from Kimimaro's hand.

This boy was dressed the same as the first two, save that his haori was embroidered with the scene of a duel between two samurai beneath blooming cherry trees, and his kimono was a deep, dark purple. His hair fell loose around his face, partially concealing it, save for two segments on the left side, which were gathered and bound with red, tubular hair ornaments.

The guard waved the last team member through, and turned to the next people waiting to get into the Hidden Village. Sand ninja. Just his luck…

**oXoXoXo**

"Alright brats, you know the drill. I have to go register us with the Hokage, and you have to stay out of trouble. Understand?" Zabuza growled as they strolled into the village.

"Yeah, yeah, Zabuza-sensei. Quit being such a killjoy, you know we've never been to other Hidden Villages before, we can at least look around a little, right?" Sakon grumbled.

"Just remember, eyes only. That goes for all of you." Zabuza replied, giving Sakon a glare.

They split from their sensei, the three boys meandering sedately through the market district. Arashi was going from stall to stall, checking out what was on offer and chatting amiably with the merchants, occasionally buying something, which he would slip away into his sleeves. Sakon was looking all around, taking in the strange new architecture and odd foods on offer. Mostly, though, he was ogling the various women walking past, and Arashi could tell that the 'eyes only' rule was already chafing his teammate. Kimimaro walked just behind and to the side of Arashi, not seeming to be paying much attention to anything, but Arashi could tell by the way the older boy was walking that he was making good use of his new eyes. No-one who was truly blind would be able to avoid stumbling as much as Kimimaro was.

After a time, Sakon loudly declared that he was hungry, and Arashi agreed. Kimimaro muttered something uncomplimentary about pigs, but reluctantly went along with his teammates. They wouldn't listen to reason where their stomachs were concerned. In response to Kimimaro's jibe, Sakon shot back a comment about Kimimaro's sexual preferences, and the whole conversation degraded from there. It quickly lost it's entertainment value for Arashi, who stopped suddenly and turned to face the bickering pair.

"Yeah, well, your mamma wasn't complaining last night about me, dick-jockey!" Sakon snapped.

"Hmf. It hardly surprises me that you would need to descend to necrophilia in order to satisfy your urges. It is hardly as though you would manage to do so in any other manner." Sneered Kimimaro, flushed with anger.

"You two shut it right now. We're going into the next food shop I see, and we are going to eat there, and both of you are going to be _silent_ except for ordering your food." Arashi growled, giving both boys a ferocious glare.

Sakon crossed his arms and turned his head sulkily, but didn't disagree. Kimimaro wilted slightly and looked ashamed of himself. Satisfied, Arashi turned and began scanning the area for restaurants. They had wandered into the poorer part of Konoha, and the only food shop in sight was a slightly run-down stand. The sign declared it to be Ichiraku Ramen.

Entering Arashi was greeted with the wonderful scents of cooking food, and the quiet murmur of conversation between the chef and his assistant. The only customer was a young man with a scar across his face, who was wearing a Leaf headband.

"Welcome to Ichiraku's! Take a seat, take a seat, suppose you boys are here for the Chuunin exams, huh? Here's your menus, just give me a yell when you've decided on an order!" The chef declared warmly, waving the three in and quickly handing them menus.

Arashi took the stool next to the Leaf ninja, his two teammates sitting apart from both one another and him. The man turned to regard Arashi, before his face split into a smile.

"So, Chuunin exam, huh? Man, it's been a while since I took _that_ one! Oh, sorry, my name's Umino Iruka. I'm an academy instructor." Iruka said, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Hebirou Arashi. You got any inside info on the exam?" Arashi asked, looking up from his menu with a cheeky grin.

Iruka returned it, wagging his finger disapprovingly. "Hey, I _am_ a Leaf ninja, you know. Even if I _did_ have information, I wouldn't tell you. Sorry, but I want my kids to succeed!"

"Ah well, it was worth a try," Arashi replied with a shrug, before ordering his food. Iruka's eyes widened comically as the boy listed his order. "… and 4 bowls of beef ramen."

"Are you really going to eat all of that?" Iruka asked, his face a picture of disbelief.

"Sure. It's been at least six hours since I last ate, I need something to take the edge off." Arashi declared, patting his stomach confidently.

"Oh, I have to see this. You eat even more than Naruto, and he packs it away like he's never going to see food again." Iruka chuckled, leaning against the counter.

Arashi felt a chill go down his spine. "Naruto? One of your students?"

Iruka contemplated this for a moment, before shrugging. "Not like I'll tell you anything he won't tell you himself. You'll see him in the exams, short blond kid, loud. Uzumaki Naruto. Graduated this year."

Arashi muttered slightly under his breath, counting something, before speaking out loud again. "So that would make him, what, 12? Isn't that a little young to do these exams, especially for a kid straight out of the academy?"

Iruka shrugged in response. "Hey, I don't nominate them, I still think they're too young, but their teachers went ahead and did it, two rookie teams this year. I think they might have been scared by… Oops, shouldn't say that." He muttered, cheeks flushing slightly in embarrassment over his near slip-up.

"Probably because of that shit in Wave, Hebirou." Sakon said, receiving a warning glare from Arashi in return. The two-headed boy made a lips-zipped motion and turned back to his food.

Arashi sighed and picked up his first bowl, emptying it in a matter of seconds before returning to the conversation.

"We know all about _that_. You know the details?" Arashi asked, leaning in slightly closer to the Leaf ninja.

Iruka nodded in response. "One of the boys told me everything."

Arashi nodded once and grabbed his next bowl of noodles. "Well, the Sound team that helped out on that mission was mine. We showed up to do more than damage control though." He said mournfully.

"That was you? I heard you took out an entire bridge full of mercenaries with one shuriken." Iruka exclaimed.

Arashi shrugged once more, another bowl of noodles in his hands. "No comment. As you said, our villages _are_ in competition for this, no?"

Iruka returned the shrug, his face a picture of innocence. "Worth a try, Hebirou-san. Wait, where did all those bowls come from!"

"Huh? Oh, I finished while we were talking. No wonder you're just a Chuunin, Umino-san, if you missed that." Arashi joked, setting down the final empty bowl of his order. "Well, it was nice talking to you, but we need to meet with our sensei before he decides to hunt us down."

With that, Arashi and his two teammates left the ramen stand, leaving behind them a significantly richer Ichiraku.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi smirked to himself once they were well out of sight of the stand. The plan had gone off perfectly. Kimimaro and Sakon's argument had been perfectly timed, and incredibly authentic. But then, the two of them really didn't get on, and often bickered in a similar way. Arashi never left them alone together if he could help it, as it would probably lead to his team being short at least one member. He didn't know what it was about the boys that made them hate each other so much, though he suspected it was Sakon who started it. That boy could rub anyone the wrong way.

Regardless, the cover had been established in such a way as to avoid suspicion. A bickering pair of Genin shut up by their teammate and forced to calm down by being quiet for a meal? It was standard squad handling tactics, right out of the handbook. Three curious Genin finding their way to a relatively popular food stall, despite its poor location? Entirely possible, especially as they were exploring as much of the village as possible. A conversation with likeable, slightly goofy Umino Iruka, the popular academy teacher, renowned for his genuine concern for all his pupils? Well, he was obviously trying to get information on enemy teams to pass on to his old students.

No-one knew that Iruka was one of Orochimaru's best agents in the village, the best if you discounted Kabuto. He was in a perfect position to spy and perform acts of sabotage, due to his role as a teacher and his duties in the mission office. It was simple for him to mislabel the odd mission, and no-one would blame the ninja for making a mistake. It was obviously those tight-fisted clients not wanting to pay for a proper team. It happened all the time. Besides, no ninja would deliberately sabotage his own village's missions, would they? Especially not someone like Iruka, whose loyalty was unquestionable.

Indeed, Iruka was very loyal. He was even loyal to the Leaf, it was just that his views on what the Leaf was did not coincide with those of the Hokage. Iruka truly believed that Orochimaru deserved to have been the Fourth Hokage, a view that was due in no small part to Orochimaru himself. After the Nine-Tails attacked Konoha, a great number of children were left without parents, and, in the chaos that followed, Orochimaru initiated contact with the most vulnerable and most promising. Iruka had fallen solidly into the latter category, and over the years had corresponded with Orochimaru through coded letters. The man had displayed sympathy and encouragement, acting as a father figure to the distraught boy. For this, Iruka felt that he owed Orochimaru a great debt – the older man had been a rock he could lean on during the hard times, a friend when he was down, and a proud father to all his achievements.

So over time the letters held more and more that was not directly related to Iruka – a tale about one of his friends, an intriguing rumour or two, perhaps the latest missions he'd been assigned. His simple correspondence had turned into full-blown reports on Konoha, still under the guise of letters to a family friend. Orochimaru's views had taken root in Iruka's heart, and the man found himself seeing the Leaf he lived in as less and less perfect with every passing day. He tried his hardest to change that, becoming a teacher and trying to influence the village through his students, driving them to be the best they could, to work well as a team, to be willing to do what they needed to in order to get the job done and keep their home safe. But it wasn't enough. It was never enough, and he feared for his home's future unless something could be done.

He had written of his concerns to Orochimaru, who was, as always, understanding and sympathetic, and offered several suggestions to help Iruka bring the most out of his students. He offered after-class lessons to all of them, gave one-on-one training to those who asked for it, and sneaked the strongest of them a few extra pieces of training they weren't supposed to know until they had graduated. The Leaf needed to be strong, and the current academy curriculum was making it weak.

Then Orochimaru told him what had to be done, and he agreed. He would put the pieces in place, and he would do his duty, and Leaf would technically be no more. But it would live on in spirit, and its people would survive under Orochimaru's protection, strong once more. The next generation wouldn't have to live in fear, wouldn't have to worry that, one day, their parents simply _wouldn't come home_. Iruka knew that it was his job to prevent anyone feeling that again. So he followed Orochimaru's instructions, knowing that he was both betraying everything he had sworn to protect, and that he was yet protecting it better than he had ever hoped to be able.

That was what the meeting had been about. The entire conversation had been a cover for the real talk, a talk conducted entirely through subtle eye movements and seemingly-random gestures. Iruka was ready for his role, and knew who to look for when he was given the signal.

Now all the team had to do was meet back up with Zabuza. Preferably before Sakon and Kimimaro began squabbling again…

**oXoXoXo**

Zabuza was sat in the Hokage's waiting room, sword in the possession of an ANBU agent until he left the building. He felt uncomfortable without it, like he was missing a part of his body. There was no helping it, though. They would hardly let a foreign ninja into the Hokage's presence without disarming them first.

Zabuza was not alone in the waiting room. There were three others in the room with him, two Rock ninja who had been there when he arrived, and a Sand ninja who had arrived about half an hour after him.

The two Rock ninja were as different from each other as night and day, one of them a gigantic young man in a heavy suit of traditional, red lacquered armour, sat bolt upright in his chair. The other was an old, wrinkled man with shaggy, unkempt hair and a beard to match, slumped in his chair with a smouldering pipe in his mouth. Both of them had been in his Bingo Book when he had been a Mist ninja – Roshi the Volcano and Han. Their bounties were massive, and both were deadly and experienced ninja with at least one bloodlimit each.

The Sand ninja was modestly famous in his own right, though his bounty was insignificant in comparison. Zabuza's had been higher even when he had still been loyal to Mist. Not that a bounty signified your power, necessarily, as it was simply an indicator of how much other villages wanted you dead. There was famously a gargantuan fortune hidden away somewhere that technically belonged to the Nine-Tailed Fox, as it had killed the Fourth Hokage, whose bounty had been the highest ever offered. This worked in reverse, of course – a skilled ANBU operative may have caused untold damage to another village, but would be worth far less than a Genin with a bloodlimit simply because of the value of those hereditary powers.

Luckily, Zabuza's team had stayed low-key enough, or at least killed all witnesses, that they weren't yet listed in the Bingo Books of other villages. They even had a little betting pool on who would be listed first, with everyone betting themselves except Kimimaro, who seemed to think that Arashi was most likely. Zabuza agreed, as the boy always represented the squad as leader or second in command, and everyone remembers the one they talked to better than those who just helped.

He was snapped out of his contemplation by the voice of the Hokage's assistant.

"Momochi Zabuza-san, the Hokage will see you now."

With a grunt, the Sound Jounin stood, dusted off his trousers, and strode into the office. He had to admit that the place was impressive, with a high vaulted ceiling, and the walls decorated with banners and tapestries depicting Konoha victories and photographs of the previous occupants. The massive desk in the centre of the room was covered in a slew of paperwork, a testament to just how bust the village was.

But all of this paled in comparison to the Hokage himself. Zabuza would readily admit that no-one as old as the man sat behind the desk had any right to be imposing or threatening. Hell, the man should hardly be able to walk unaided, especially given that he was a ninja. Sarutobi Hiruzen, however, had always defied expectations. The youngest Hokage ever, the longest ruling, the only man to have been Hokage twice, and possibly the deadliest ninja to have ever walked the planet. In his youth, he had made the Yellow Flash look like a rank amateur. He was the man who had taught the legendary Sannin, the man who was justly known as the God of Shinobi.

Zabuza would also readily admit that he was something of a fan of the old man. Despite his usual contempt for authority, he held the Third Hokage in a position of respect, as he had heard that the man was a fair and amicable ruler.

That didn't prevent him from nearly wetting himself in fear when the Hokage looked up from his paperwork with lidded eyes, treating Zabuza to a full dose of his killing intent for a brief moment. He knew it was all show, but the ability to generate that much focused ill-will onto a single individual was extraordinary. Killing intent had nothing to do with your power, but was instead entirely reliant on your willingness to annihilate someone. Zabuza had no doubt that if he fucked up here, there wouldn't be enough of him left to clean up off the walls.

Then the Hokage gave a genial smile, and Zabuza let out the breath that he hadn't realized he was holding.

"Momochi-san. I must admit that it is a … surprise to see you here, though hopefully not an unpleasant one. I had not realized that Sound was so short on Jounin that they needed to send an untested one with one of their Genin teams." Sarutobi said.

"You don't need to worry about that. The brats just needed a firm hand to keep 'em in line, Hokage-sama. I'd also like to apologize for what I did to your team in Wave." Zabuza replied. It was true, slaughtering the Jounin had been unnecessary, but his job had come first at that point.

"It is a shame, but misunderstandings happen. It saddened me to hear of it, but thanks to your new team's actions, further loss of life was avoided. I would recommend that you keep out of the way of any Hyuuga, however. They hold a grudge, and the girl was Clan Heir."

"Thank you for the warning."

"It isn't for your sake, Momochi-san. Having a ninja murdered during the Chuunin exams reflects badly on the village," Sarutobi responded, his voice laced with steel. "Now, you are here to nominate a team, correct?"

"Yes. I, Momochi Zabuza, wish to nominate Team Crescendo of Sound, consisting of Hebirou Arashi, Kaguya Kimimaro, and Sakon, for the Chuunin Exams of the Village Hidden in the Leaves." Zabuza intoned, reciting the traditional form.

"I hear your nomination and approve. Team Crescendo may participate in the Chuunin Exams held by the Village Hidden in the Leaves," Replied the Hokage, following the formula. "Now, paperwork, please, much though I hate the stuff."

Zabuza nodded and handed over the documentation, receiving four passes in return.

"These are permanent passes, to replace the one-day passes you were issued at the gate. They will be valid so long as the Chuunin Exams continue." Sarutobi explained.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Replied Zabuza, bowing respectfully before backing out of the room, never turning his back to the Hokage. Paranoid was only applicable when the person _couldn't_ kill you in a half-second while your back was turned.

The Hokage allowed himself a small smile once Zabuza had left his office. It was nice to know he could still cow even the most bloodthirsty ninja into submission despite how much his powers had decreased with age. He sighed. It used to be that he could kill someone just with fear, but the days for that were long gone. He needed to retire, and he had plans in place for after the Chuunin Exams for just that. If only he could keep Jiraiya here for long enough, the Toad Sannin would be stuck with his job and Sarutobi could be off having fun before his old student knew what had hit him.

**oXoXoXo**

It was several days later when the Chuunin Exams finally began. Arashi had been bored out of his skull after the first two days, during which he had refamiliarized himself with the layout of the village. There had been far too much time spent sitting on his hands, as even though his team had made extensive use of the training grounds, they restricted themselves to very basic exercises. No point giving the enemy an advantage, after all, especially when they were supposed to be posing as a spoilt brat and his two slightly-more-competent cronies.

Arashi and his team made their way through the streets to the site of the first part of the exam, the ninja academy. When they got there, they were overwhelmed by the number of people present. It seemed like everyone and their brother had shown up for the exam. There were teams from every shinobi village Arashi had heard of save Waterfall – which made Arashi snigger upon realization – and at least six teams from each of the major nations. There had to be nearly every Genin in the world here.

Arashi supposed that, since this Chuunin Exam was being held in Konoha, the other villages considered it safe to send green Genin to get some experience. After all, Konoha was known for its distaste towards unnecessary killing, and deaths in the Chuunin Exams were always lowest when held in the Leaf. There was also the fact that the villages were trying to make an extra show of strength – Sound was participating for the first time this year, and Grass were sending their first teams for several years. The other villages needed to prove that they were still worth hiring over the newcomers. Besides which, there were rumours of at least one Jinchuuriki present, and everyone wanted to know about such a weapon.

However, the vast numbers of Genin milling around were obviously a problem. They would need to be cut down vastly before the first exam could even begin, and Arashi could already spot several disguised ninja hidden amongst the crowd. He may not have been any good with genjutsu, but he could feel ninjutsu just fine, and the _henge_ that these ninja were under lit them up like beacons for anyone with a degree of chakra sense. He lay a hand on Kimimaro's shoulder, his fingers pressing down in a brief code. Kimimaro nodded, and Arashi felt the other boy tense up slightly as he activated his new eyes.

Kimimaro shrugged and scratched at his ear, then wrinkled his nose. Definitely Leaf ninja under _henge_, probably a part of the test.

Arashi yawned in response, and began leading his team in a meandering path through the crowd, pausing to chat with the odd person as he did so. Halfway to the academy, he paused by one of the disguised ninja, greeting them politely and offering a hand to shake, adding a discrete wink as he did so. As their hands met, Arashi could feel a slip of paper being slid into his sleeve, and, after a few more pleasantries, he moved on, conversing briefly with a few more Genin before subtly slipping the paper out into his palm.

He raised his hand to scratch his forehead, a faint trickle of chakra keeping the paper stuck to his skin, and read the note scrawled upon it using his peripheral vision. No point giving anything away unless he had to.

_Room 13-D, 4__th__ Floor. Present the note at the door._

Keeping the smirk off his face, Arashi hid the note once more in his sleeve and began leading his team around to the back of the building, where they slipped into the academy through an open window, probably left that way for this very purpose.

Once inside, they swiftly made their way to the designated room, and were permitted inside once they displayed the note. Seemed like they'd passed the preliminaries.

Arashi snorted as he looked around. The Leaf had obviously cheated, as all of their teams were already here. He supposed that was the host country's prerogative, though. Ah, and there was the target, stood with his arms crossed and a glower on his face while his comrades crowded around Kabuto. The spy was doing his card tricks again.

Arashi strolled over, and greeted the bunch with a cheery wave.

"Hey, you guys are Leaf ninja, right? Got any inside tips on the tests?" He asked, a broad grin on his face.

"Oi! Even if we did, why'd we tell you?" A boy replied, sticking his tongue out.

Arashi turned his gaze to the boy, his eyes widening slightly with shock. It was him. Him as he would have been, had he stayed in Konoha.

The boy was short and skinny, with spiky blond hair and bright blue eyes, but Arashi's gaze was drawn to the three scars on each side of the boy's face. The same scars that were on _his_ face, if you removed the concealing make-up. They had made a copy of him, a vile imitation. It was disgusting, laughable and yet made too much sense.

How else would they have kept an outcry from arising? You didn't just let the Jinchuuriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox _disappear_. So they must have taken some poor boy who looked very similar, then mind-wiped him and rewritten his personality, and surgically altered him to look just as Arashi had when he had left.

"Hey! Are ya listenin' to me? I'm Uzumaki Naruto, and I'm gonna be the next Hokage! You can't just ignore ME!" The boy yelled, his voice the high pitch of someone who hadn't yet started puberty.

Arashi couldn't help it. He burst into hysterical laughter. His entire body shook as his incessant cackling saturated the air, continuing even as he bent in two, tears dripping down his face, only stopping when he could no longer breathe.

"Whooo!" He exhaled, wiping the tears from his face. He gave the brat a smirk that showed his fangs. "I haven't laughed that hard in a long time, kid. You don't need to get so defensive though, I was just asking."

Naruto was stood there with his arms crossed, looking confused and hurt, until he noticed the pink-haired girl next to him looking at him, then Arashi, then back again, over and over.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, what's the matter?" He asked.

"Um, Naruto, don't you think you and this guy look really similar? Or is it just me?"

"I gotta agree, Hebirou. The resemblance is fuckin' creepy." Sakon added over Arashi's shoulder, Sakura blushing slightly at the bad language.

"Huh, if you say so. Probably a coincidence. There has to be more than one blond with blue eyes around, no?" Arashi replied, waving a hand dismissively. Sakon knew the signal meant _Drop it, I'll tell you later_, so he did.

Sakura, however, would not be dissuaded. "I'm serious! Don't you agree, Sasuke-kun?"

The scowling boy took a moment, his eyes slowly scanning the two, before his frown deepened further. "Hn. You may be onto something." He admitted grudgingly.

"Well, I suppose if what my mother told me is right, then there's a possibility we're related. I always thought it was just some wish-fulfillment dream she was spinning out of whole cloth, but hey, can't deny your eyes, right? She always said my dad was some famous Leaf ninja."

Sakura's eyes widened slightly. There were only two famous Leaf ninja she knew of who had blond hair and were old enough, and she doubted Yamanaka Inoichi was this boy's father. His hair was the wrong colour, for one.

"You expect me to believe your father was the Fourth Hokage?" Shikamaru drawled, breaking into the conversation. He must have got bored with Kabuto's card show and meandered over while Sakura wasn't looking.

"Hey, I don't know. I'm just saying that the only way I could be related to the Orange Menace here," Arashi gestured at Naruto, "Is if my mother's story is true. And she never gave me a name, just said it was some famous Leaf ninja. I think it's just some line she was fed to get her into bed." He shrugged.

Shikamaru gave him a long stare with his hooded eyes, before shrugging and turning away. "Troublesome." He muttered.

Sakura sighed in exasperation. It _was_ odd, how similar the two boys looked, but it probably was coincidence. The romantic in her still insisted that they were two long-lost brothers, fate bringing them together across the continent into this chance meeting. Naruto looked slightly disappointed, as though he had been hoping for something similar. She didn't doubt it, as the poor boy had no family.

_Hey, nor does Sasuke-kun, and you don't see _him _in every dark-haired, dark-eyed boy you meet, do you?_ Inner Sakura pointed out. Sakura had to agree with herself on that point.

"Hey, Hebirou, look who's joined the party!" Sakon crowed, pointing towards the doorway, where another team of Sound ninja had just entered.

"Oh, _yes_." Arashi hissed, a feral grin on his face. Dosu and his team were his favourite targets. The boy was still afraid of him after that arm incident a few years back.

"HEY! DOSU! OVER HERE!" Sakon yelled, waving enthusiastically. The other boy looked as though he was about to bolt, but then he saw Arashi beckoning too, and his resolve melted.

His team quickly made their way over to Arashi, all three of them bowing low as they arrived.

"Greetings, Hebirou-dono. I wasn't aware Team Demon would be participating." Dosu mumbled, his teeth clenched beneath the heavy bandages covering his scarring.

"Hah! We aren't Team Demon anymore, Dosu! You know that! We're Team Crescendo! Do you need a reminder on how I feel about nicknames?" Arashi said, voice jovial.

"No, Hebirou-dono, I do not." Dosu replied, body tense with fear. Every conversation with the psycho was like this, all happy-happy until he slipped up.

"Ah, well, next time then. You should introduce yourselves to our friends here! After all, Leaf were kind enough to allow our humble village to join their Chuunin Exams." Arashi prompted.

Dosu began to sweat profusely, noticing that Sakon had slipped around to one side and was currently flirting with Kin, who looked very nervous, and Kimimaro was in a murmured conversation with Zaku, who looked far more relaxed, although his face was still tight with anger.

"Ah, good day to all of you. We are Team Allegro, I am Dosu, she is Kin, and he is Zaku. Nice to meet you." Dosu managed, bowing stiffly, his metal arm tingling with phantom pains, just as it always did when near Arashi.

Sakura muttered a polite response, confused as to why the boy seemed so nervous. Naruto bellowed his exuberant greeting. Shikamaru gave a lazy wave, Chouji mumbled something through a mouthful of food, and Ino returned the bow and gave a cheerful reply. Sasuke just grunted.

Luckily, before Arashi could start the mental torture, a group of ninja appeared in the midst of the Genin, and a wave of killing intent paralyzed most of them, save Arashi's team, Sasuke, and a few teams from other countries. Arashi's team all _pretended_ to be paralyzed, however.

"All right, you worms! You were all lucky enough to chance upon our hidden examiners, some of you might even have _figured it out_, though I very much doubt it! We have separated the wheat from the chaff, and now it is time to start grinding you maggots down. The next test is a written one, and you will be assigned seat numbers. Everyone get up here and get a number! If we aren't done in five minutes, anyone left out is disqualified!" Bellowed the man at the centre of this new group, his scarred face twisted into a furious glare.

Arashi grinned. Nice use of intimidation tactics – surprise appearance, overwhelming fear, derision of target's capabilities, hidden threats, actual threats, and an incentive to do what you were told. This guy might not even be the examiner, but everyone in the room believed he was. Even Arashi was a little intimidated, as the man had a certain presence that only the very best interrogators developed.

The number-collecting was a very brief process, thanks to the continued abuse hurled at them by the examiner, and his frequent counting down of the time they had left. One young Genin was so intimidated they broke down in tears, immediately disqualifying the entire team. Arashi approved. Chuunin had to be tough, but also had to be able to work in and with a team, so if you couldn't rely on your team, you shouldn't be here.

Once all the numbers had been distributed, the Chuunin hopefuls were trouped through into another classroom, where they took their seats. Arashi was sat between a shivering Grass Genin girl, who was looking at him with unconcealed disgust, and a haughty, sneering Hyuuga. He smiled at both of them, flashing his fangs, then turned his attention to the front of the room, where the examiner was stood, feet shoulder-width apart and arms clasped behind his back.

"The rules for this are so simple even you idiots will be able to understand them, so no questions are allowed to be asked. You will be given a sheet of paper with nine questions. You will answer those questions. Every correct question gets you two points. After 45 minutes, a tenth question will be written on the board, also worth two points. Your team needs to score at least 20 points total to pass the exam. Anyone caught cheating will have two points deducted from their total. If your team accrues a total of five cheats, you will be disqualified. You may… what?" The man asked, scowling at the person who had raised their hand.

A rather nervous Sand ninja stood up, back ramrod straight. "What if we need to go to the bathroom?" She asked, blushing furiously.

The examiner sighed. "If you can't hold it in for 45 minutes, you aren't fit to be a ninja. You asked a question. That counts as a cheat. Your team now has -2 points. Anyone _else_ want to ask stupid questions?"

The entire room shook their heads.

"Very well, begin."

With that, the room fell silent save for the faint scratching of pencil on paper. Arashi scanned the room quickly, noting that a few examiners under _henge_ were scattered around, probably so they could cheat off them to get the right answers. The examiners situated around the walls were making notes on their pads constantly, an obvious trick. They didn't need to record very much information, and Arashi was sure they were just doodling on the paper, trying to intimidate the green teams. No real ninja would fall for such a trick.

He turned to his exam, smirking at the questions. He hated any written work, but Oro-nii had insisted he keep working on it, and so he was at least capable of answering some of the questions from that. Some of the others, he could guess from battle experience. Another he knew from his extensive travels with his team. All in all, he was satisfied that he had answered at least seven of them correctly. Kimimaro would be able to answer them all easily, and had even been provided with a Braille exam paper. Sakon would have difficulty, but his own score plus Kimimaro's should make up the difference. Arashi guessed the last two questions, scribbling whatever came to mind.

Satisfied, he set his pencil down and flipped his paper, leaning back in his chair and looking at the clock. He still had half an hour left, and knew that most of those who stood a chance of answering the questions would likely be finishing soon too. So it was another intimidation tactic, making them sweat. What if I _wasn't_ right? Just one more look, maybe I'll just make sure. I'll redo those calculations, after all, they aren't my strong point. All these thoughts and more would be racing through the candidates' minds as they sat there, waiting fro the exam to finish.

Arashi yawned, stretching his arms, then closed his eyes. He may as well catch up on some sleep.

**oXoXoXo**

Ino's knuckles tightened around the pencil so hard that her hand went white.

_Shitshitshitshit! I don't know _any_ of this! Am I gonna have to risk it? I am, hope no-one notices me cheating. Shika's good, but he's not good enough to make up the points me and Chouji are going to lose the team!_ She panicked.

She glanced around the classroom, looking for a good target. There! That rich blond guy who'd been talking to Sasuke-kun's team! He was done already, and proceeded to yawn and fall asleep. Perfect.

She bought her hands together under the desk, forming seals as she molded chakra, finally forming her fingers into a box shape. She held the jutsu, and lay her head down on the table, pretending to go to sleep. She pointed her hands, still under the table, at the boy, and released the jutsu, sending her mind soaring across to enter his head.

**oXoXoXo**

_Drip_

Where was she?

_Drip_

What was that noise!

_Drip_

This had never happened before – she was supposed to be looking out through her target's eyes.

_Drip_

She groaned groggily and slowly opened her eyes.

_Drip_

"Hey, blondie, what the fuck did you do? One second I'm about to catch forty winks, the next I'm back here!" An angry voice asked.

_Drip_

In front of her was stood the boy she had tried to take over with her Jutsu, leaning forwards on a black sofa. Only it wasn't him, it was a girl, but then it was a boy again. It looked like him, but he had Naruto's whisker marks but he didn't but then he did. His hair was long and hung in lank, technicolour spikes down to his shoulders, his eyes shifting colours to every one she could think of and a few she couldn't. He was naked save for a pair of shorts, but dressed in full ninja gear, yet clad in a formal kimono, and so much more besides. His skin was dark and pale and tanned and every skin tone ever. He was tall and short and everything inbetween. It was making her eyes water.

_Drip_

"Shit, is that your self image? Dad told me about the subconscious, but never said it could be like this." Ino groaned, blinking rapidly to try and clear her blurry vision a little.

_Drip_

She looked around. She was in a large, pristine room, the walls a glowing white, the floor smooth polished wood. She was slumped in a comfortable black armchair, half-facing the boy. The only other items in the room were a large fireplace in the wall that she was half-facing and a dining table with six chairs set around it. There were two doors facing each other from opposite walls.

_Drip_

Oh, and there was the corpse of a young woman suspended from the ceiling on several metal hooks. She was the source of the dripping, as blood fell from her in a steady trickle.

_Drip_

Ino opened her mouth to scream, but found it covered by a gag. Her entire body was suddenly strapped to the armchair, and she couldn't move an inch. She tried to scream, but all that came out was a muffled noise that she could barely hear.

_Drip_

She hadn't noticed the stink before. The bitter taste of copper in the air, the warm, repugnant scent of fresh-spilled blood.

_Drip_

"Subconscious? That means you're in _my_ mind, girlie. Which is a bad, bad place for anyone to be, but sweetheart, for you, it's even worse. I'm off to explore a little. Don't worry. I'll be _back_." He hissed from behind her, his mouth so close to her ear she could feel his breath. Her eyes rolled, trying to spot him, but he was gone.

_Drip_

She was alone in this room.

_Drip_

And he was coming back.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi let himself out of the subconscious image of his sitting room. It was odd, but fitting that his mind was organized like his quarters in Sound. After all, he considered them an extension of himself, so it wasn't that surprising that they were here in his mind too. He hadn't gone into his bedroom – there was no exit from there, and he wanted to have a look around his head. He wondered what the girl had meant about his self-image, and turned into his bathroom to look at himself in the full-length mirror.

_come…_

The bathroom was the same as it always was, all white tiles and fluorescent lighting. The only odd thing was the corpse in the bathtub, floating in its own blood. Bodies didn't bleed that much, and the corpse was still going, the blood spilling over the edge of the tub and into the drains all around it. It was a child this time, a young boy.

_come to …_

Arashi gave a snort and turned to the mirror, examining himself. Yeah, he could see where the girl was coming from. He had no concrete self-image. Not surprising, considering that he had to be able to play any role he wanted. He'd acquired the ability to think of himself as anything. But this wouldn't do. He concentrated, and his form stopped changing, settling into a pale-skinned, black-haired boy, his hair bound back in a short ponytail, his eyes decorated with Orochimaru's purple snake make-up. He was wearing his usual casual clothes, black trousers and a dark purple t-shirt, with his feet bare. That was better. He got rid of the whisker marks too, he hated them.

_come to me…_

Now he looked like a younger, stockier Orochimaru. He liked the look. It was a pity he wouldn't be able to keep it outside, but his skin was naturally far too dark, and his hair grew out blond, so he had never had the chance to try it save with the odd _henge_ in private. They said that imitation was the sincerest form of flattery, and he hoped that Orochimaru agreed. It was a fairly important thing, setting one's self image, and he knew that this was how he really saw himself – Orochimaru's true son, nearly a perfect copy. The shifting body that he had before was simply brought about by his confusion at being brought into this place so suddenly, his mind didn't have time to adjust to the fact that he was no longer out there, but in here, and had set up a defensive smokescreen to hide his identity.

_Come to me_

Now what had that been? He thought he had heard a whisper, but that couldn't be. The girl was still in his sitting room – how did he know that? – something to contemplate later. He left the bathroom, returning to the hallway. He hadn't noticed before, but it was distorted, far too long, the spaces between doors different from those in his real quarters, sometimes less, sometimes more. Bodies were hung from the walls at seemingly random intervals, leaking a steady stream of blood, which disappeared again before it had trickled too far.

_Come to me!_

He'd definitely heard that. What could it be? It wasn't actual speech, more like a whisper into the corner of his mind. Ah, but that could be it. Now he was in his subconscious, he might be able to hear the Fox.

_About damn time, you stupid human. Now, COME HERE!_

The voice bellowed in his mind. He snorted in response. Fuck that. It was his mind, and he was going to take his sweet time exploring it.

_YOU BRAT! YOU DARE DEFY ME, THE GRATEST OF THE TAILED BEASTS!_

Yeah, the Nine-Tails could yell all it wanted. He still wasn't following orders from a stuck-up furball. Especially not one that was his prisoner. He set off to explore his mind, the disgruntled muttering of the Fox echoing in his head all the while.

His subconscious had a great many more rooms in it than his quarters back in Sound – all of them containing some sort of corpse, dripping blood that never seemed to run out, but also never seemed to spread further than a small pool. There were rooms full of weapons, the blades crusted with dried blood. There were rooms full of clothes, on racks which were directly beneath the dripping corpses, covering them in blood, then the clothes moved through a door into a steam-filled room where they somehow became clean again, only to pass out through another door and under the corpses again. There were rooms full of empty-eyed women, all posed in alluring positions, all dressed in provocative or no clothing. They were all dead, throats slit, knives buried in them, ropes around their necks.

He began to feel hungry after seeing all of this, the corpses and copious blood setting his stomach rumbling, and, as if summoned, the next room he entered was stocked to the rafters with food. He left the room with a large bag of bone-shaped sweets, which he cheerfully munched through as he wandered through the twists and turns of his mind. Finally, he came to a massive steel door, one ten times his height.

"My mind, my rules." He muttered to himself, and with a wave of his hand, the door opened.

What lay behind it was surprising. It looked exactly like one of Orochimaru's labs, complete with caged specimens all around the walls and workbenches scattered throughout. In the centre of the room was a pit, the top barred over. Arashi strolled over, crunching merrily on his sweets.

_Well, better late than never. You have no idea how dull it is to be stuck in here for 13 years, brat._

"Well, well. I thought you'd be… bigger?" Arashi asked, peering down at the Fox.

The Nine-Tails snarled up at him, which would have been threatening had the beast not been the size of a normal fox. Its legs were each chained to the ground, another chain was around its neck, its mouth was muzzled, and each of its nine tails was strapped to the ground with heavy leather restraints, save the central one, which waved above its body furiously.

Arashi looked closer at the bars, and could see that the pictogram for "Seal" was worked into them, all the way along their length, though one of the bars was pitted and corroded. He smirked down at the Fox.

_Release me! Release me now or I shall rend your soul to shreds!_

"Look, if you could do that, you would have already." Arashi pointed out.

_Do not TEST me, human! I can make your life endless misery!_

"Again, I feel I have to say that you can't do that. Stop threatening me and I may be reasonable. We could work out a deal." Arashi said, sitting cross-legged at the side of the pit.

_Hmf. It is beneath me to deal with pathetic mortals._

"Well, then I guess that pit is a little too big for you, no? Must be feeling a little agoraphobic in there?" Arashi sneered, waving his hand. The walls closed in until the Fox was touching them on all sides.

_HUMAN! Cease this foolery, or…_

"Shut it, you mutant freak." Arashi snapped. "You are in MY mind. MY body. Therefore, you follow MY rules. We'll continue this chat at a later time. For now, I have a girl that needs to be taught a lesson."

With that he stood, and, as he left the room, waved his hand once more, ignoring the Fox's frantic threats. The floor of the pit rose until the Fox was squashed against the bars, the beast thrashing about in impotent rage.

**oXoXoXo**

Ino was crying. She had been stuck here for what felt like hours, though she knew it would be mere seconds in the outside world. She was in someone else's mind, and they were stronger than her. Too strong. Her father had said that a Yamanaka could escape any mind, but he had _lied_. She had tried and tried and now she was still stuck!

She whimpered behind the gag when she heard the door opening, then began thrashing frantically as the boy appeared before her, a cruelly hooked kunai in his hand. He snapped his fingers, and the gag disappeared. He stepped forwards and grabbed her face, squeezing hard enough to make her jaw creak.

"Little girl, we are going to have a long and fruitful discussion about trespassing. You tried to violate my mind. I think that I should return the favour, after all, it is only fair, no?" He growled, his other hand tracing up and down her side.

She shuddered and began screaming again, but he didn't stop.

He never stopped…

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**AN: But I do!**

**Also, I hope you liked my preliminary exam. It is relevant that so many teams showed up, but as for why, well, you'll see later.**

**Damn, that took a long time to write.**

**Next chapter: The fallout! The drama! The Second Exam! (Some of it, at least).**


	19. Convergence, Part II

**AN: Sorry for the delay – my laptop had been on the way out for a while now, and it finally gave up the ghost. Took a while for the new one to get here, hence the delay.**

**Also, over 100 reviews! Awesome! I've put up a couple of one-shots as a joint present/apology.**

**Just wanted to make sure that everyone knows that I'm writing Arashi as a **_**villain**_** here, and that he's behaving in ways I consider utterly reprehensible. I don't support the majority of what Arashi does, has done or will do in this story.**

**I'm also not trying to bash any characters – Ino is suffering here as a plot device, in case you couldn't already tell Arashi was a vile, disgusting example of a human being. I don't really feel strongly about most of the characters in **_**Naruto**_**, and I feel that bashing detracts from a fic.**

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**Convergence, Part II**

Ino wasn't screaming any longer.

She couldn't. She didn't know when she'd stopped, when she'd finally ruined her throat to the point that nothing more than a hoarse hiss could escape. She knew she'd still been screaming when he'd started pulling out her teeth. She thought she'd still been screaming when he first cut away her clothes, the slow, meticulous kiss of his blade dancing across her skin as he stripped her.

He'd violated her in every way possible, the soft, insane grin never leaving his face, his eyes just that fraction too open the whole time. He'd tortured her, then used her over and over again, and when he grew bored of that, he'd started torturing her again, and the cycle would repeat, over and over.

The first thing he'd done was cut off her eyelids then sear the wounds shut, so she had to watch everything that he did. He'd broken all of her limbs, carefully snapping the bones every inch. He'd taken her teeth, and then used them to stab her. He'd cut out her tongue when he realized she could scream no more. When she seemed to be drifting away, her consciousness seeking to distance itself to save her sanity, he'd injected her with something that brought the world back into sharp focus. He'd carefully dissected each limb in turn, flaying the flesh from it, delicately severing tendons, carefully separating the fragments of bone.

And still she couldn't die. She was trapped in his mind, and he was keeping her here, conscious, alive, to experience the torment he was inflicting on her. She thought he might finally grant her death, an escape from this. She was no longer bound to the chair, for there was no way she could escape. Her legs, her arms, had been completely removed, the sockets cauterized. It would kill her in reality, but here in the mind, unless her brain was destroyed, she would still survive. She hoped he didn't know that.

"Ah, but I'm forgetting myself, sweetheart. We _are_ in the middle of an exam, aren't we? So I'm going to set you free in a moment, darling. Just one last thing…" He crooned, one hand running gently through her hair, the pale blonde standing out starkly against the pool of blood beneath it.

He leaned over her face, his mouth opening slightly as it descended onto her left eyeball. His tongue slid down, longer and further than any human could manage, forcing its way between the edge of her eyeball and her skull and diving down to sever the optic nerve and connective muscles. Ino didn't even flinch. She had suffered so much that this final humiliation hardly registered. With a single swift flick, the eyeball was plucked from its socket.

Drawing back, Arashi spat the eyeball, still whole, into his palm.

"Ah, a souvenir. How sweet of you, honey, to give me a parting gift." He leered, producing a length of leather cord from nowhere and threading it through the eyeball.

He slipped the cord over his head and his smile changed from the soft, entranced grin he had been sporting the whole while to his regular sneering smirk.

"You can leave, now. Go back to where you belong, my love, and we'll meet again in the flesh, hmm?" He mocked, waving a dismissive hand at the motionless girl.

**oXoXoXo**

Shikamaru was worried about his blonde teammate. She'd lain down at her desk five minutes ago, then slumped in a way that he recognized meant that her soul had left her body for a jaunt in someone else's head. She should have been done and back by now, though, as it took mere moments for Ino to gather information this way.

He was further alarmed when Ino's eyes opened again. Her head was turned in his direction, and the glazed stare that his friend was sporting was not a good sign, and her left eye was clouded over. Worse, blood was slowly trickling from her eyes, nose and, from what he could tell, her ears. Shikamaru might have been the laziest ninja in his year, but when a friend was in trouble he acted without hesitation.

"I forfeit. My friend needs medical attention." He announced, his tone slightly panicked.

Ibiki looked up from his notepad, his eyes widening fractionally as he took in the stricken girl. He'd noticed her use her clan technique and had thought nothing of it – she'd hidden the movements well and chosen a suitable target, and he knew from working with Inoichi how efficient the technique could be for gathering information. He pressed one hand to his ear, activating his microphone, and muttered a demand for a medical team and the girl's father.

One of the proctors had moved to collect the girl, but the moment he touched Ino, she bolted back, curling up into a fetal ball, eyes still open wide, and started keening softly while blood continued trickling down her face. The entire room was looking at her in shock, amusement, or disdain, some people showing all three emotions at once. Arashi raised one eyebrow. That was interesting. He thought he'd broken her completely, but she seemed to still have a degree of awareness. She must be tougher than she'd seemed. A second glance at the girl showed that her left eye had clouded over, turning a milky white. Unless she'd spontaneously developed the Byakugan, he suspected he'd blinded that eye.

Interesting. None of the other injuries had manifested, but the eye he'd taken had resulted in her losing sight in that eye. Perhaps because it was part of the brain? He wasn't sure, but it was certainly something interesting to report to his Oro-nii.

Talking of which, he hoped that his mentor had managed to get into the Forest of Death without too many problems. He was going to wait there until the second exam, when he would meet up with Arashi's team. They'd decide what the best course of action was to turn the Uchiha then. If Arashi didn't think it could be done, then they'd just kidnap the boy, Orochimaru and Kabuto taking him away to one of the bases, while Arashi's team dealt with the rest of the exam. They would return in time to play their parts during the third section, a month was more than enough time to travel to even the furthest base from here and back again.

The medical team had finally arrived, and had managed to get the girl strapped down onto a gurney. She was wheeled out, medics scanning her with green-glowing hands as they left. Her two teammates followed, concern etched on their faces.

Ibiki took advantage of the disconcerting situation.

"You see what happens if you pus-sacks try to cheat? If you morons don't want to end up like her, I suggest giving up now. This is the easiest part of the exam. No weaklings like her will survive the next test." He growled, subtly layering killing intent over the examinees.

Several broke and gave up, trooping dejectedly out of the room with their teams. Ibiki scanned the room. There were still far too many teams. A quick check of his internal clock revealed that there were still twenty minutes left of the exam. He sat down and began fiddling with his clipboard again, waiting for a few minutes until the room filled with frantic scribbling as the remaining Genin tried to complete the hopeless test papers.

He slammed his hand onto the table, rising with a scowl. "Alright, that's it! I'm fed up with all of your piss-poor attempts at this test! I'm going to put the tenth question up now! But first," He added with an evil smirk. "You'll need to hear the extra rules for this question."

The entire room was looking at him as though he'd gone mad. He'd told them that they'd be given 45 minutes for the test, hadn't he? Why was he stopping them at less than half an hour in? The didn't realize that Ibiki was simply trying to get rid of as many teams as possible, putting up an impatient façade to try and shock them into leaving. The test was only supposed to go on for half an hour, and he had lied when he'd told them they had fifteen minutes more.

"This question is extremely _special_." Ibiki hissed, leaning forwards over the desk and placing both his hands on it. "You can choose to take it or not. If you choose to take it, and you get it wrong, then you will never be allowed to take the Chuunin Exams again. You will remain Genin _forever_. However, if you choose not to take it, you will automatically fail the exam. You will, however, be allowed to take the Chuunin Exams when they next come around. I suggest that you all give up now. From what I've seen, none of you weaklings are good enough to make it as a Chuunin. You have three minutes to decide. By then, either give up, or prepare to fail anyway."

The tension in the room was palpable. One of the fake examinees, a proctor in disguise, shakily raised his hand. Ibiki waved him out and his two fake teammates followed him, shooting him death glares the whole way. This opened the floodgates, as team after team gave up, until Ibiki once more slammed his hand onto the desk.

"Alright, this is your last chance to surrender." He declared, scanning the room.

Arashi raised his head from the desk, scratching at the back of his neck. He looked around the room. The Genin on either side of him were still there, the Grass girl still shaking slightly, a green tinge in her cheeks. The Hyuuga alternated between looking bored and shooting calculating glances at the Cloud Genin present. There were still a lot of teams left, but that was all the better for Arashi. A few more teams made a last-minute decision and left, and then it was time.

Ibiki glared out at the gathered Genin. Damn, still too many. He owed Anko sake and dango for a week. And supplying Anko with sake and dango for a _day_ would empty most people's wallets.

"Congratulations. You passed." He said, his face twisting into a facsimile of a grin.

The room erupted with questions, shouts, cheers, and backslapping. Arashi carefully lowered his head back to the desk and plugged his ears, trusting that he'd feel it when they stopped – after all, the noise was shaking his desk quite severely.

"Those who do not trust in their teammates are trash! Those who do not have the courage to face a mission are not ninja!" Ibiki stated, his voice cutting through the noise even though he was only speaking slightly louder than normal. "Every mission you face holds risks. Every day you wake up and face problems. A Chuunin understands this and is willing to stand up against dangers. A Chuunin trusts that their team will back them up and allow them to do things that, alone, they could never do. A Chuunin can see underneath the underneath, and knows that a true ninja will cheat yet not be caught. And sometimes…"

He paused for breath, gazing out at the gathered Genin, most of whom were looking back at him. He reached up and removed his bandanna, revealing the hideous scars he'd received when he had been captured by enemy ninja.

"Sometimes information is worth more than your life. Look well. These are the consequences you may suffer. Even on a C-ranked mission, there are always risks. I was captured on routine patrol, and this is what was done to me. If you are not willing to face such things, leave now. You will not cope with the rest of the exam." He said solemnly, retying his bandanna at the end of his speech.

Arashi didn't even try to keep the bored look off his face. He knew that the best torture left no scars on the body. A true master would ruin your soul, tear it to tiny shreds then have you beg him to put it back together again, offer anything and everything in exchange for peace. Arashi knew only one person who could do it, and that was, shockingly, not Orochimaru. The man was a master of torture, no doubt, but lacked the essential empathy required to truly destroy a target's will. No, the one that Arashi looked up to as the definitive torturer was a small, mild man, an innocent, friendly-looking fellow who worked as Orochimaru's chief interrogator.

Arashi didn't have to look bored for long, as, mere moments after Ibiki finished his speech, a massive ball of cloth smashed through the window. It slammed into the ground, bounced once, then came to rest on the far side of the room. There was a soft pop, and smoke began to drift lazily from the bundle, which was now swearing profusely.

Arashi's eyebrows rose. That was some colourful language, and some of the threats leveled at the cloth were very inventive. Perhaps his Oro-nii might have a use for whoever was bundled up in the strange wrap? Once they'd been trained to remove the incompetence, of course.

And then the woman trapped inside finally cut her way out, and Arashi's eyebrows dropped into a fierce scowl, a low hiss escaping his clenched teeth. The traitor bitch. His hands twitched, desperate to form the seals that would send the treacherous whore to her knees, writhing in agony. The Grass Genin sat next to him flinched and whimpered, a tear trickling down her terrified face, and the Hyuuga spared him a glance. No. He had to control himself. When they had struck this village stone from stone he would hand the traitor to his Oro-nii, bound and gagged, to beg for mercy for the rest of her very, very long life. But for now he had to keep in control. He forced down the urge to leap across the room and rend her limb from limb, instead turning to look at the cowering girl next to him.

She had red hair, reaching down to her shoulders, a pair of rectangular, thick-framed glasses, and smelt like she was about to wet herself. Why was the little worm so scared of him? He'd shown very little of his usual viciousness and cruelty, externally at least. He wondered if she was another mind reader. His face split into a vicious grin at that thought. Oh, what he would do to her if she tried...

But no, he had to concentrate. Losing focus would be … bad. In more than one way. He turned back to the front of the room, desperately holding back his impulses. It was a losing battle, and he needed to get that bitch out of sight soon, or he would abandon the mission and start tearing into her.

"...so follow me to the next part of the Exams. And do try to keep up, I'd _hate_ to have to kill you because you fell behind." She finished, running her tongue suggestively along the blade of a kunai.

Well, shit. He'd missed the entirety of the explanation while he struggled with his conflicting drives. He'd have to get the story out of Kimimaro on the way.

**oXoXoXo**

Inoichi removed his shaking hands from his daughter's forehead. She was lying in a hospital bed, a drip in one arm delivering sedative, a blood transfusion being pumped slowly into the other to replace what she was still losing from her eyes, nose and ears. He smoothed her hair back with one trembling hand, his eyes damp with tears.

"I take it that it's bad in there." The Hokage said, carefully observing the blond Jounin.

"I … that thing … my _daughter..._" Inoichi murmured, the last word a broken sob.

"Inoichi. Look at me. You _cannot_ touch the one who did this. The best I can do is get word to the proctors and other Leaf Genin teams about who it was. I need a name, or at least a description." The Hokage said, resting a firm hand on the other man's shoulder.

"He... he's a Sound ninja, I think. It's... it's all broken images and half-forgotten pain in there. The things he did..." Inoichi's voice wavered, but he closed his eyes, took a deep breath. When he opened them again, they were hard with rage. "He's blond, mid-to-late teens, short for his age, but broad. Hokage-sama... some of the images, the things he did... it was like seeing the results of _his_ experiments again."

The Hokage gave a sad smile. "Inoichi, you know that Jiraiya and I killed him. We both saw the body. There's no way that he could still be training people. I know it's no consolation, but we don't need to worry about Orochimaru any more."

Inoichi's eyes finally raised from his daughter. "Hokage-sama, please, don't say the name. You know what he did to us, to my clan especially. Don't honour the Snake with his name."

The Hokage gave a small nod of acquiescence, then left Inoichi to try and piece back together the tattered fragments of his daughter's psyche.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi had picked up the basics of the test on the short trip to the ominously named Training Ground 44, The Forest of Death. The rules were simple – get two scrolls, one each of Heaven and Earth, and bring them to the central tower within the time limit, and don't open the scrolls. Other than that, they were free to do as they wished. Arashi wished that he wasn't on a mission, as the set up sounded like it would be a lot of fun for him. He doubted the other teams would enjoy it quite so much, though.

Upon arrival, they were given the explanation again, much to Arashi's disappointment. He spent the entire time with his back to the insufferable woman, finding it easier to ignore her if he couldn't see her. This was unfortunate, because it singled him out.

Before he even realized it, he had reacted, the point of the kunai that had been flung at him pressed hard against her throat. He'd grabbed the blade in midair and turned, arm snapping out to place the weapon into the exact spot that Anko had used the _shunshin _to teleport to. A trickle of blood ran down her throat and soaked into her flesh-coloured bodysuit.

"Heh, quick for a brat, aren't you?" She said, leering, but it was a weak response and her voice was slightly off. He'd shaken her. Good.

He struggled with himself for a moment, trying to fight back the urge to finish the thrust and kill her. Then the moment passed, and he reminded himself once again that the mission had to come first. He drew the blade back, raising it to eye level and examining the blood. His hand began to shake, and, with a single sharp jerk, he bought the weapon closer to his face, right to his mouth. His breathing deepened, becoming irregular and ragged. His tongue slid out, almost against his will, and meticulously cleaned the blood from the weapon, his gaze distant, both detached and satisfied at the same time. He shuddered, then his entire stance changed, returning to his usual relaxed posture.

His mouth twisted into a sick smile. "You want it back, Leaf bitch?" He offered, his arm extended, kunai resting in his open hand.

Anko's face displayed a mixture of confusion, repulsion and, oddly enough, arousal, as she snatched back her weapon.

"Get moving! You all need your scrolls. Remember, anyone not at the tower in five days with one of each fails!" She bellowed, scattering the Genin who had gathered to watch the little show.

It took a little over an hour for all the teams to get their scrolls and get to their gates. During this time, Arashi passed a note to Dosu, giving him his instructions, and slipped as many tracking seals as he could onto other teams. No point risking failure because they couldn't find another team to take their scroll when they had been given the perfect opportunity to ensure they could find the opposing squads.

Arashi saw a few others doing similar things – one was sniffing the air as she walked, taking in the scents of the other teams. Another was coughing and sneezing as he moved through the gathered Genin, making sure to dust as many people as possible with sprayed saliva. Arashi kept well away from that one. The problem was, you could never tell whether a ninja was using an esoteric technique or just being disgusting.

The proctor at their gate kept giving Arashi angry looks, for no apparent reason. When he thought that Arashi wasn't looking, his lips drew back from his teeth in a silent snarl. Odd, but nothing to be concerned about. Arashi could probably rip the man in two without breaking stride.

Then they were off, a flare filling the sky with a second sun. The hunt was on.

**oXoXoXo**

There was an unusual thing about the Leaf entries this year. There was a single team consisting entirely of Hyuuga, each one pulled from their respective team to form this elite squad. They weren't here for the Exam, however.

Neji had his Byakugan activated the moment they stepped through the gate.

"Six teams still in, nearest one is the next gate." He snapped, and the team whirled and took off in the indicated direction.

Neji may have hated his younger cousin with a passion. He may have wished to kill her with his bare hands. He may have spent many a night awake, staring at the ceiling, dreaming of destroying his oppressors.

But he would not tolerate a slight against his clan. They may have been cruel, tyrannical bastards, but they were still better than anyone else. And the theft of his cousin was akin to spitting in the clan's face. It would not be borne.

So Cloud had to learn the consequences. They had to learn that, despite the clan's seeming weakness, there were limits that one could not push.

The Hyuuga descended on the first Cloud Genin team in absolute silence.

**oXoXoXo**

Once they were safely out of sight, Arashi pulled a sealing scroll from his sleeve, unrolling it with a flourish. With three silent puffs of smoke, three clothing dummies stood before the team, dressed in their combat gear. A single handseal from each team member swapped them with the clothing dummies, instantly dressing them in their gear and leaving their old clothes hung upon the dummies. A few moments later, and the transformation was complete, every exposed inch of their flesh smeared with grey camouflage paint, the bright, eye-catching clothes stashed in the sealing scroll.

Arashi was clad in a simple outfit, a long-sleeved top and three-quarter length trousers in grey-and-black camouflage, his headband unfolded into a bandanna to cover his bright hair. He wore heavy black boots, the soles of which contained hidden blades that could be extended with a pulse of chakra. The shoulders to his shirt were missing, revealing the sealing tattoos there, at least until said tattoos were covered in the camouflage paint. He flexed his hands, loosing a trickle of chakra, and the new seals on his palms activated, covering his hands and lower arms with black metal gauntlets, the fingers vicious claws, the metal shaped into ridges and spikes along the length of his forearms. Another exertion of will and the gauntlets returned to their seals.

Haku had come up with the idea when he had seen Arashi struggling to form seals efficiently in his old clawed gloves. It turned out that the boy was a talented blacksmith, and he had crafted the deadly gauntlets for Arashi, the entirety of the weapons made of chakra conducive metal. The seals had come from Orochimaru, but had been asked for and applied by Haku. It meant that Arashi could fight with the gauntlets, seal them, use a jutsu, then unseal them and continue fighting. He could use simple techniques with them on, shadow clones and such, but needed to get rid of them for big attacks. The chakra required to do such a thing would make it crippling for anyone but him to use the gauntlets this way.

Of course, Arashi's gift had been the least of what Haku had created. The boy hated him with a passion, but desperately needed to make himself useful. So he made weapons and armour for Arashi's team. Zabuza got the best of it, his new armour a gift from the boy, who had also extensively modified Zabuza's massive sword. What he had done to it, Arashi didn't know, but it was bound to be both deadly and entertaining.

Kimimaro was showing the most skin of any of them, a consequence of his lethal bloodlimit. Any shirts he wore got shredded within hours, so he now went without when on a mission, instead painting his entire upper body with camouflage. His hair was loose around his face, the hair ornaments he had been wearing now sealed away for safekeeping. He didn't want to loose the precious presents. His legs were covered only by a pair of loose shorts, his lower legs completely bare and, once again, covered in paint. To least hamper his fighting style, he should have been naked, but he was perfectly content to stay at least partially clothed. He hardly used his hipbones in combat, after all. Around his waist was a brace of senbon needles, a new weapon for him, one which complemented his new eyes. He would always prefer to get in close to fight, but sometimes he needed precision over sheer brute force. The senbon were perfectly balanced and half again as long as the standard weapon, designed to be able to reach all of those awkward pressure points, and were, again, chakra conducive.

Sakon was dressed similarly to Arashi, save that he wore four short swords on his hips, one for each hand, and that his shirt was sleeveless, to allow Ukon to attack more easily. The short swords were straight, double-edged weapons, much like smaller replicas of Orochimaru's Kusanagi.

Once they were all prepared, Arashi formed a series of seals and slammed his hands onto the ground, summoning a tiny grass snake.

"Tell Orochimaru that we're ready." He ordered, flicking the serpent a small mouse as he did so.

With a nod, the snake disappeared in a puff of smoke, still swallowing the dead rodent. A few minutes later, Orochimaru descended from the trees, clad in his usual beige shirt and purple rope belt.

"Good to see you, Ara-chan. Lead me to the Uchiha boy." Orochimaru said, face twisted into a gloating smirk.

**oXoXoXo**

Neji kicked the corpse at his feet, rolling the body over to lie face-up. His hand darted out and grabbed the scroll from where it had been concealed beneath the girl's body. Two Cloud teams down, and they had found two more Earth scrolls. A pity that they too had been given an Earth scroll, but there were four more teams to kill, and one of them was bound to be carrying the scroll they needed. They had left the duplicates with their victims. Neji trusted that fate would deliver them to the right hands. If the other Cloud Genin were as weak as this, they would be done by the end of today and could spend four days preparing for the next part of the Exams.

He knelt beside the corpse, a kunai in his hand, and placed the point to the dead girl's forehead.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi's squad bounded through the lower branches, Orochimaru trailing them higher up. They were racing towards the seals he had planted on all three of the Uchiha's team. Their prey had been moving ever since the signal had been given to start the exam, making their way towards the centre of the forest in a lazy zigzag.

It took Arashi's team less than half an hour to catch up with their prey, coming across the three rookies as they took a break to eat, drink and catch their breath. Pathetic. It seemed like the Uchiha agreed with Arashi's assessment, as he was stood, glaring angrily, while his two teammates sprawled on the ground and panted.

"You two need to keep up. If we stop moving, we could be ambushed." Sasuke snapped, folding his arms in frustration.

Well, Arashi couldn't pass up that opportunity.

"Someone mentioned an ambush?" He sneered, dropping to the forest floor and landing right on his scrawny copy, pinning the boy in place with one hand.

The pink girl – Sakura? - gave a scream and tried to scrabble to her feet, but was cut short as Sakon planted both feet into her back and drove her back down into the leaf litter. Kimimaro landed next to Arashi and took over control of 'Naruto', a short spike sliding from his palm to rest on the back of the boy's neck.

Sasuke, to his credit, immediately attacked, flinging a handful of shuriken and following up with a fireball. Arashi's hands flashed, and the shuriken were snatched from the air and sent right back, and a quick set of handseals drowned the fireball in a torrent of water.

"Here's the deal, Uchiha. You and me, one on one. You beat me, I let your team go. I beat you, we take your scroll. Hell, if you can beat me, you might even get our scroll in return, hmm?" Arashi said, a smirk splitting his face.

Sasuke's lips drew back into a snarl as he rushed Arashi, and Arashi let the boy drive him back, turning slightly as he did so, leading the fight out of sight of the Uchiha's teammates. He was struggling to to let his reflexes take over, because his Oro-nii wanted this pathetic human left alive. If he simply reacted as trained, the boy would have been dead before he'd launched his first shuriken.

But he needed to draw the boy a good distance away, so that their fight wouldn't be seen by the boy's teammates. He smirked and leapt backwards, beckoning with his right hand, making the Uchiha follow him deeper into the forest. He could sense his Oro-nii just above them, waiting to pounce, and knew that he was now far enough away. They needed to make this look good.

He suddenly reversed direction, ploughing into the Uchiha with his shoulder, then following up with a crushing reverse roundhouse kick that slammed into the boy's skull, sending him spinning and leaving him spitting dirt. Arashi planted one foot on the back of Sasuke's head, driving his face into the floor, and ground his heel, making the smaller boy open his mouth to whimper in pain, and pressed down harder, filling his mouth with soil and dead leaves.

"How appropriate." Arashi hissed, leaning down to whisper into Sasuke's ear. Sasuke wondered, briefly, how the other boy could do that and still maintain such crippling pressure on his skull. "The _oh so mighty_ Uchiha, bowing down in the dirt before his betters." A thoughtful pause followed. "Which would be everyone, I suppose, judging by how poor your skills are. Weak, pitiful worm that you are, how do you expect to succeed at anything?"

Sasuke let out a wordless scream of rage, muffled by the mouthful of dirt, and struggled to grab at the boy pinning him to the ground, but to no avail. Tears of rage and frustration leaked from the corners of his eyes as his arms flailed impotently against the earth.

"Of course, this puny village must be in part to blame." Arashi continued, voice thoughtful."None of your pathetic ninja have offered my team a challenge so far. A pity that your growth will be so stunted here."

Arashi paused once more, holding back the urge to put his full strength into the foot pinning the Uchiha. He must not, must not, must not. He desperately wanted to plunge the heel of his foot all the way through the Uchiha's swollen head and into the ground. But he mustn't, for his Oro-nii needed the vessel beneath him.

"If you want power, well, there is always a _price_, no? A sacrifice. I imagine that's a lesson your brother taught you well, hmm?" Arashi chuckled as the frenzied thrashing increased in intensity at the mention of the elder Uchiha. "Well, you'll never be allowed to grow to your full potential here. You know that when the villagers look at you, they always think that you look _so much_ like your brother. So much like the _traitor_. Perhaps you're just like him? Perhaps you'd kill your family and leave the village, if given the power to do so. So they keep you trapped here like a caged animal, no? Limit your growth, teach you so little, so slowly. They don't _appreciate _you here."

The Uchiha's thrashing slowed a little, and it was obvious to Arashi that his words had hit something within Sasuke.

"One last thing … a _gift_, if you will. The one who taught me may be interested in doing the same for you. I am stupid and slow and weak, and he has turned me into this. What can he do for _you_?" Arashi hissed into Sasuke's ear. "All you have to do is... prove your worth. Use the gift he gives you well, and he will accept you under his tutelage. All you have to surrender is this worthless heap of rubble you call home."

Orochimaru had been stood just next to the pair the whole time, yellow eyes gleaming in satisfaction at his pupil's work. At Arashi's last word, his neck lengthened and dropped his head down to the supine boy's shoulder, mouth opening wide and fangs sliding into position. His teeth sank into Sasuke's shoulder, injecting the polluted chakra that would swirl into the Cursed Seal if the boy survived the process. That was his first test, and there would be many more to come.

Sasuke shuddered in pain as the Snake Sannin's teeth sank in, then his eyes drooped closed, the poisonous chakra working its magic. Arashi picked up the unconscious Uchiha and slung him over his shoulder.

**oXoXoXo**

The two remaining Genin from the third Cloud team were exhausted, running terrified through the forest. Ghosts, clad all in white, had descended from the trees in utter silence and struck dead one of their team members with only a touch. There were stories of such spirits haunting the mountains around Cloud, taking the souls of travelers who had insulted them by passing through their territory without giving offerings.

Kaede was scrabbling frantically through her pack, finally grabbing a fistful of ration bars from their resting place in the bottom of the bag. She hurriedly unwrapped them, still running, then stopped. She turned and knelt, bowing her head, arms outstretched with the ration bars held in her cupped hands. Tears streaked her cheeks and her entire body was shaking with fear and exhaustion.

"Please, spirits, we didn't mean to offend you! Take what you want, just don't kill us!" She begged, repeating it over and over again.

Neji's hand snapped down and she fell silent.

**oXoXoXo**

Sasuke landed before his horrified teammates with a heavy thud.

"Sasuke-kun! Sasuke-kun! Please, be OK!" Sakura screamed, struggling against her bonds to no avail.

"Hey, you, what did you do to him? You're not gonna get away with this!" 'Naruto' yelled, similarly fighting the ropes that tied him.

"Oh, be quiet. He's alive. Kimimaro, you get their scroll?" Arashi growled.

The white-haired boy nodded. "However, Arashi, I fear that it is not the correct one. It is a replica of our own, a second Heaven scroll."

Arashi shrugged, then clicked his fingers. Kimimaro tossed him the scroll, and with a malicious grin, he set it on the ground right in front of the two bound ninja.

"Now for my favourite party trick. Pay close attention, boys and girls. Now you see it..." He formed a single handseal and exhaled sharply, a small fireball rushing from his pursed lips to incinerate the scroll. "Now you don't."

"Bastard! Why'd you do that! You coulda left it for us!" 'Naruto' yelled.

He seemed to yell a lot. Arashi decided that he didn't like it. Arashi blurred, and the other blond was lifted from his feet by a thunderous uppercut, enhanced by the deadly gauntlets that had appeared on Arashi's hands. He rose ten feet into the air, jaw shattered, and landed with a sickening crack. Arashi licked the blood from his gauntlets with a leer.

"Ohmygodsohmygodsohmygods please don't kill me too!" Sakura whimpered.

Arashi gestured to Sakon, who delivered a solid backhand to Sakura's face, knocking her to the ground. Arashi strolled to her groaning form and crouched directly over her chest, lowering his head so that his face was practically touching hers.

"They're both still alive, for now. Blondie has a shattered jaw and dislocated shoulder, should stop the little bastard from chatting, but otherwise not damage your team's continued efforts. Mr. Stick-up-his-arse over there will wake up in about twelve hours. You will suffer some bruising and..." Arashi inhaled deeply through his nose, taking in her scent, eyes half-closing. "I'll know where to find you now. So keep an eye out, hey? I might decide to finish the job later, and we aren't so kind to girls as we are to boys." He leered.

He stood and signalled to Kimimaro and Sakon, who leapt into the trees and disappeared. He then turned back to Sakura and flexed his clawed gauntlets, eyeing her contemplatively.

"Don't move, or this will hurt a lot more." He ordered, hands lashing out.

Sakura screamed as the ropes tying her were slashed away, fear overwhelming her momentarily. She flinched as the taloned hands swept out once more, shredding her clothes from her in three easy swipes, then screamed once more as a gauntlet swept across her stomach, lightly scoring the skin. She realized she had her eyes shut.

"You're mine now, girl. I'll be _back_." A voice hissed in her ear, and then she was alone but for her unconscious teammates.

So, alone, naked and cold, bleeding from five lines across her torso, Sakura set about trying to get her teammates to safety.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi and his team sat in the branches of the tree directly above Sakura and watched, mocking laughter held down through sheer willpower. They made sure she got both of her teammates to a relatively safe position, then Arashi sent another summoned snake to fetch Dosu's team.

They didn't stay to watch. They had a scroll to collect, and with Kimimaro's useful eyes, they were moving rapidly towards a likely location. They were brought to a halt by Kimimaro's raised hand.

_Follow carefully, there may be traps_, he signed, and set off again, leading them closer and closer to the ground.

The scene that greeted them was gruesome. Three corpses, their hands and feet removed, a cross-shaped seal carved into their foreheads, lay in a neat row on the ground. Their eyes had also been removed, and, from the stink in the air, had been burnt nearby. The Genin's headbands had been laid across their stomachs, the symbols identifying them as Cloud ninja.

"Huh. Looks like all this was done after death." Arashi commented, poking one of the corpses with his booted foot. "Not enough blood."

"Whoever it was wasn't after the scroll. Look, there was an Earth scroll just lying here. No traps or anything." Sakon replied, tossing the scroll in question from hand to hand.

"See the seals? Hyuuga Branch Family have those to lock their abilities after death. Prevents transplants and renders them sterile without a Main Family member using the right handseals, too." Arashi said, running his forefinger along the lines of the carved seal.

"I for one am glad they don't place those seals on their Main Family members." Kimimaro said, a small smile gracing his face. "I rather missed being able to see, and that little girl you brought in should provide Oro-"

He was cut off by Arashi, a sharp gesture silencing him mid-sentence. _Being watched, two to the north, one to the east. Wait and ambush._ He signed.

"Hey, don't say his name. You know that's meant to be a secret, Kimi-chan. As are your little presents. Generous though little Hinata is, I don't think her father would approve." Arashi sneered.

The trees rustled in the wind, and he could feel the watching ninja use the sound to mask the noise they made as they moved closer. Amateurs. He could hear them moving over the noise of the trees, smell two of them, as they hadn't moved upwind of him, and actually see the third in his peripheral vision, sat in the branches just above Sakon.

He exploded into motion, a single handseal propelling him into a _kawarimi_ that swapped his position with that of the branch directly above his target. He dropped onto the boy with both hands raking down, gauntlets now in place over his hands. The boy was in mid leap as Arashi descended, but wasn't moving fast enough to avoid the wind chakra channeled through the gauntlets. Pieces of him landed on the forest floor with wet thumps.

Sakon had his target in a grapple, two arms holding the young boy still while Ukon tore his head from his neck. Blood fountained briefly, the last few spurts of the boy's failing heart, coating Sakon in red, which bubbled on his face and then sank into his skin.

Kimimaro had restrained his target, the white-haired boy always the one chosen to capture a foe for interrogation. He had the red-haired girl from the test pinned to the ground, long bone spikes impaling her hands and feet, running through flesh and into the earth. Her eyes widened as Arashi turned towards her, recognition flooding onto her face, and she convulsed, a trickle of bile leaking from her mouth.

"Damn, whadda you do to this chick? She see you interrogate or something?" Sakon asked, waving the severed head of his enemy around to punctuate his words.

"Never seen her before the exam earlier. I think she's some kind of mind reader." Arashi replied, crouching down in front of the girl, whose eyes had rolled back in her head.

"See it, I see it, the shadow, no, no!" She screamed, desperately struggling against the spikes. "NINE! NINE!"

Arashi frowned slightly. Nine? Could be coincidence, but either way, it seemed she knew too much. "Sakon. You have half an hour, if you want, then finish her off." He said.

Sakon gave a vicious grin in reply, moving to the prone girl, a kunai in one hand, loosening his belt with the other. Arashi wandered over to the nearest of the five corpses scattered around the area, checking it for anything useful, then moving on to the next when he was done. The girl's screams slipped from terrified to terrified and agonized. He grabbed a necklace from his kill, slipping it into his trophy pouch, then unwrapped a pair of ration bars he had found, tossing one to Kimimaro and biting into his own. The redheaded girl's screams got louder.

"Fuck me sideways, these things taste like shit!" He snarled, face twisted in disgust.

"More proof of our master's superiority, Arashi. The ration bars _he_ provides are delicious." Kimimaro replied, voice raised so he could be heard over the screaming girl.

Arashi nodded his agreement, but shoved the rest of the ration bar into his mouth, chewing and swallowing rapidly. He'd used a lot of chakra recently, and the longer he lay off eating his own supplies, the better. He went through another six bars before he was full, and by the time he managed to choke down the last of his food, Sakon had rejoined them and the girl was silent, naked, flesh torn to pieces, throat slit.

Arashi smiled. They had more than four days left to enjoy themselves here. Perhaps some more fun could be had with the unsuspecting Genin infesting the forest.

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**AN: Yes, the redheaded girl is Karin. Sorry, anyone who liked her, but Sakon needed a victim too. Again, check my profile for a few new one-shots which I hope you'll enjoy!**


	20. Convergence, Part III

**AN: This was an utter monster to write; I find that I struggle the most with fight scenes. Next couple of chapters should be more exciting. That said, enjoy!**

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**Convergence, Part III****  
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Arashi nibbled absent-mindedly at the apple he was holding, watching the forest from his seat on the windowsill of his team's room. They had arrived a day ago, to make sure that they qualified, and had been sat on their hands since then. There was less than an hour until the end of the exam, and very few teams had made it through. Arashi's face split into a feral grin at the thought. That was mostly thanks to his team, though he couldn't take the credit for only one of the six Cloud teams making it through. The teams from Rock had been similarly denuded, with likewise only one team making it to the tower, though Arashi doubted that the other Rock teams were all lying mutilated in the forest.

Kabuto's squad had made it through half an hour ago, all of the members bruised and battered. A group of Hyuuga had arrived shortly after the only Cloud team, and had seemed on the verge of tearing into them before a pair of Leaf Jounin whisked the white-eyed squad away. Another group of Leaf ninja had made it through, a girl with her hair in two buns, a freakish, green-clad moron, and a determined Aburame Shino making up the team. It was odd that the boy had been reassigned so quickly, but he had been the most skilled of the team that had been dispatched to Wave. Sasuke's squad had limped in five minutes ago, the blond on the team with his entire head swathed in bandages, Sakura clad in what little she'd salvaged from her ruined clothes – Arashi had begun to drool when he saw that she was forced to expose the wound he'd given her – and the brooding Uchiha even sulkier, if that was possible.

The Sand siblings had cruised through the forest in a matter of hours, and had been the only reason that Arashi's team weren't first through, though he reckoned that if he'd pushed his team, they would have cleared the forest within an hour of starting. The girl was attractive enough, but Arashi couldn't stand her superior attitude, and had decided that, when they betrayed Sand, she would be given over to Sakon. The other boy had a thing for the haughty ones. The Jinchuuriki on the team made Arashi's hackles rise, and he desperately wanted to show the redhead his place – under Arashi's boots – but knew that he had to leave him alone for the moment. The puppeteer barely even registered.

The Cloud team seemed like a fairly credible threat to the other teams, and consisted of a spear-wielding boy with long black hair, dressed in a plain grey kimono, a girl who sported three spike-like blades – Arashi had no idea why she had three, unless she practised some esoteric and useless form of swordfighting – and another girl who had a massive crossbow strapped across her back. They all carried themselves with an air of experience, and were all about seventeen. Old for Genin who still had a chance of being promoted, but Arashi knew that every Hidden Village held back at least one squad of highly-skilled Genin to enter into particularly important Chuunin Exams.

The sole remaining Rock team were likewise seasoned Genin, though where their Cloud counterparts seemed to specialize in taijutsu, the Rock team appeared to be generalists or specializing in another area – the sole girl on the team appeared to be a medic, and the two boys were twins, probably ninjutsu specialists.

Finally, a scant few minutes before the Second Exam finished, Dosu's team managed to stagger into the tower and present both scrolls. Arashi was impressed despite himself – the group were supposed to have tested Sasuke about a half-day after they received their instructions, and judging from their injuries, either he had performed admirably or they had fallen out of the trees again. That was the problem with Dosu's squad. Their reliance on sonic weaponry, which was quite indiscriminate, had meant that for the first few months they kept damaging each other simply jumping through the trees. Dosu's glove, in particular, would hurt anyone near it when a slight breeze blew over it. They were the laughingstock of Sound for good reason, after all.

Arashi was glad they had made it, however, because it meant he had a legitimate excuse to see their 'sensei', who was, in fact, his Oro-nii in disguise. As anyone who knew the slightest bit about Arashi could tell you, he relished every moment with his surrogate father, and would happily drop everything for the slightest chance to spend time with him.

A few minutes later, a Leaf Chuunin knocked on their door. "Please follow me to the next stage of the exam." He said, glaring at Arashi as though he had been wronged by the blond.

**oXoXoXo**

The Hokage's speech was far too long and boring for Arashi to bother listening to. He spent most of his time smiling at his Oro-nii, who was smirking back at him. His good mood was dampened by the presence of the vile traitor-bitch, but if his Oro-nii could contain himself, then so could Arashi. The rest of the time, Arashi spent sizing up the competition. He had gathered from the Hokage's long-winded speech that there would be preliminary matches to eliminate half the remaining Genin, to bring the numbers down from 27 to a more manageable 14 – one competitor would get a bye, that competitor being the girl from the Rock squad.

The only real problem would be if he was put up against Gaara. The redhead looked murderous, and Arashi knew that he didn't understand the concept of holding back. He would have to seriously hurt the boy to stop him, which could cause further problems – he needed to be conscious to control his demon, and he needed to be relatively unharmed to play his part in the plan. He was by no means vital, but his loss could cause problems. Besides, Sand would likely not appreciate their Jinchuuriki being slapped around with contemptuous ease.

Arashi's team mates would likewise destroy any of their opponents, so far as Arashi could tell. The real problem would be if a no-kill rule was implemented, as Sakon had never been much good at following those, getting too carried away in his bloodlust. Arashi was hardly much better, but neither of them held a candle to an enraged Kimimaro, who was almost unstoppable. Judging by the way the sword-wielding girl from Cloud kept brushing up against him and giggling, he would snap any minute. Kimimaro hated being touched by anyone he didn't trust explicitly, and there were exactly five people on that list, those being his team mates and Orochimaru. He would tolerate Kabuto's touch for medical reasons, but had nearly taken the glasses-wearing man's arm off when they had first been introduced and Kabuto had unwisely tried to shake his hand.

From the worried looks Sakon was shooting the white-haired boy, he too could see that the bone-wielder was about to commit wholesale slaughter. He was too scared of Kimimaro to do anything about it, however.

Arashi sighed. It was always his job to keep the peace. He gently took hold of Kimimaro's shoulders and dragged him away from the girl, then took his place, leaning over to whisper in the girl's ear.

"You're very lucky I just did that. He would have torn you to pieces if you'd kept that up. Don't try it again." He hissed, face contorted in anger. He liked other people touching his property almost as little as his property liked being touched by other people. And make no mistake, Kimimaro was most definitely his property.

"So if everyone will take their places on the balconies, we will begin the draws." The Hokage finished, waving one arm in emphasis.

The Genin teams began trooping to the staircases, while their sensei simply used _shunshin_ to take their places. Arashi's squad likewise teleported to their sensei, who was standing with the disguised Orochimaru.

"Well, I see you brats made it. You want a round of applause?" Zabuza grumbled, his arms folded. He had managed to drop into a lazy slouch against the wall despite how uncomfortable it must have been with his sword still strapped to his back.

Arashi performed a deep, elaborate bow, sweeping both arms out into intricate patterns. "Why, we live to entertain, Your Majesty." He sneered.

Zabuza delivered a playful swat to the back of his head. "Good to see nothing damaged your shitty sense of humour. What was your tally?"

Arashi made a show of ticking off fingers. "Hmm, no they don't count, they were like that when we got there..." He muttered.

"Fifteen and two-thirds." Kimimaro snapped, still upset from his earlier harassment.

"Two thirds?" Zabuza repeated, head tilted slightly. "That isn't like you three. What happened?"

"Hey, there was only two of the guys in the first place. Not our fault someone already nailed the third one." Sakon protested.

"Hey, look, they're drawing. Hope I'm up soon." Arashi interrupted.

The proctor in the ring looked up at the names that had appeared in the two boxes, then turned to the watching Genin and declared, "Matsuda Hiroto versus Hyuuga Hareru."

The spear-wielding Cloud Genin vaulted the railing and landed lightly on the arena floor, his weapon already held at the ready in one hand. One of the Hyuuga split from his group and made his slow, dignified walk to the ground.

"What a stiff-necked asshole." Sakon muttered. Arashi murmured his agreement.

The two fighters were soon in position, and the match started in a spectacularly boring fashion. They circled one another for five minutes, one occasionally darting forwards to test the other's defences, before the Hyuuga grew tired of the cat-and-mouse game and charged in, hands flashing out to deflect the spear he was certain was coming for him.

Hiroto used the shove to propel himself into a 360-degree spin, the point of his spear briefly kissing the stone floor as he turned, throwing up a scattering of sparks. The blade whipped up, piercing through the Hyuuga, who had desperately tried to backpedal the moment he realized that he had acted too quickly, deflected the spear too early.

The spear-wielder hopped back, pulling his weapon free with a wet slurp. He'd hit a lung, and the Hyuuga realized this when his breath turned to fine bloody mist. It didn't stop him, however, and he renewed his attack, face now twisted in fury. A flurry of strikes drove at Hiroto, but he calmly kept his distance, jabbing his spear into the weak points of the Hyuuga's defence, inflicting a half-dozen shallow cuts before the proctor appeared behind the Hyuuga and knocked him out with a swift blow to the neck.

"Matsuda Hiroto wins. Hyuuga Hareru is unable to continue the fight." He stated calmly as he handed the gravely wounded boy over to the medics.

On the balcony, the two remaining Hyuuga were gripping the railing, their faces twisted in rage.

"How dare you! You spit on our honour!" One yelled, and his arms tensed, preparing to launch him over the edge.

His companion seemed almost as angry, but far better controlled, his glare icy cold rather than hot. He placed one hand on his team mate's shoulder, clamping him firmly in place.

"It is my duty to stop the match if it seems one of the competitors is about to die." The proctor replied calmly. "Next match is Aburame Shino versus Uzumaki Naruto."

The half-mummified blond leapt the railing, stumbling as he landed but managing to right himself before he landed in a painful and embarrassing faceplant. Shino was far more graceful, landing without a sound.

The following fight was brief and predictable. 'Naruto' tried something, it worked for a little while, and then Shino crushed it. He pulled out _bunshin_, which Shino simply ignored, as he could tell the from the original. He tried the _kawarimi_, but Shino had covered the arena in bugs by that point, and wherever he went, the muted boy was steadily drained of his chakra. Finally, he raised his arm.

"Mhn mhhn nhhh." He said, his eyes watering in pain as the fragments of his jaw ground against each other.

"You surrender?" The proctor asked, and when it was confirmed with a nod, he raised his voice. "Winner is Aburame Shino. Uzumaki Naruto forfeits."

The next two fights were very quick – Gaara went up against one of the Rock ninja and simply swamped the boy in sand, killing him quite comprehensively before the proctor could declare him victor, and the girl with her hair in buns faced the 'Angry Hyuuga', as Arashi had dubbed him. The boy had a few good moves, but the girl seemed to be able to read all of them, and took him to pieces in short order. Oddly enough, the sole remaining Hyuuga nodded in approval at this.

"Next fight, Kaguya Kimimaro versus Tenka Midoriko!" The proctor announced.

Kimimaro's face split into a pleased grin as he saw who his opponent was. It was the girl from earlier, the one he'd been desperate to tear to pieces. And now he would be allowed to do it, be rewarded for doing it.

"Enjoy yourself, Kimi-chan." Arashi smirked, patting him on the shoulder.

With a light-hearted chuckle the white-haired boy flowed over the edge of the balcony, flipping once in midair before landing on all fours, his paint-smeared hands leaving faint smudges on the floor. The girl made her way down the stairs, and Arashi took the opportunity to get a closer look. Her skin was almost white, a sharp contrast to the black hair she wore in long braids. She was dressed in a sleeveless white shirt and loose black trousers, obviously emulating her sensei, a massive man who was wearing a ridiculous number of swords. She was concentrating on a small notebook she was holding, scribbling something down with a small pencil.

"Yo, Team Stratus gonna kick all your asses!" Her sensei yelled, in a very poor approximation of rap.

"Ano, Bee-sensei, why did you not cheer me?" The spear-wielder asked, obviously hurt by his sensei's negligence.

"I would have, Hiroto, but I had to come up with a good rhyme first, y'know?" The man replied, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

Arashi rolled his eyes. _That_ was Killer Bee, supposedly one of the most powerful Jinchuuriki around? It was shameful to be even loosely associated with that buffoon. But then, it could be a façade, a method to lull his enemies into a false sense of security.

Midoriko had reached the centre of the arena, standing across from Kimimaro, who had begun picking his fingernails with a senbon. She giggled again, then took a deep breath, and began to read from her notepad.

"Yo, pretty-boy, your face is real nice, wanna go on a date when this fight is over?" She said, attempting to mimic her sensei's already atrocious rapping, and in the process failing even more miserably than he had.

The two members of her team simultaneously planted their hands over their faces, the crossbow girl muttering something about 'a disgrace to all kunoichi', while their sensei cheered. Arashi and Sakon exchanged glances and began to crack up, their hysterical laughter earning them some odd looks from the other Genin.

Kimimaro's face had distorted into a mask of pure rage. First, this filthy harlot kept touching him, and then she tried to take him away from his Orochimaru-sama? She was going to pay dearly for her transgressions. His skin shifted and rippled, the bones beneath it moving into position, ready to act the moment the match started.

"Begin."

The second that the word left the proctor's mouth, Kimimaro had leapt forwards, jagged spikes of bone bursting from every inch of his flesh. He lashed out with his left hand, and the forwards-facing bones that surrounded it tore through the girl's shirt, ripping into her side before she managed to jump away. Her eyes were wide with fear and shock.

She wasn't alone. A good proportion of the audience had let out a gasp of surprise when Kimimaro had unveiled his bloodlimit, while Sakon and Arashi had begun shouting encouragement.

"Rip her fucking legs off!" Sakon howled.

"Flay her alive! You know the audience will love it!" Arashi bellowed.

Even Dosu's squad joined in the heckling, perfectly happy to support Arashi's team against anyone that wasn't them.

Midoriko had run to the other end of the arena to try to get some space from Kimimaro, perhaps hoping that, because he was blindfolded, she would be able to avoid him. Kimimaro played to her expectations, stopping his movement and tilting his head as though he was listening, but Arashi knew better. Kimimaro must have been really pissed off if he was about to do _that_.

With a dry hiss, the skin down Kimimaro's back split open, all the way down to his pelvis. He placed his right hand on the back of his neck and pulled forwards over his shoulder, drawing out his spine. As the bones slithered from his body, they instantly regrew, the skin closing up over them within moments. He gave the spine-whip an experimental lash, gouging a cut into the stone floor.

Midoriko's face blanched, obvious even from the balconies, but she drew her swords, all three of them, holding one in each hand, the third trapped in the crook of her right elbow. With a near-silent exhalation of breath, she leapt backwards, flipping to land her feet on the wall, then ran along the outside of the arena, trying to get behind Kimimaro to attack from an unexpected direction. He played along with it, stalking slowly towards the last place Midoriko had been, spine-whip ready in his hand, until a moment before the girl would have struck.

He waited until the last possible moment, then, with a sharp intake of breath, shot every bone protruding from his back out like they were off-white javelins, skewering Midoriko at least five times, then whirled the moment the bones left his body, bringing his whip around to rend a horrific wound along the length of her body. She fell to the floor, and Kimimaro brought the whip back around, raising it over his head to bring it down in a punishing strike that would certainly kill the girl, but the proctor managed to call the match to an end before Kimimaro finished the girl.

"KaguyaKimimaroisthewinner!" The man yelled, so fast the words blurred together. He'd seen one death under his watch today, and didn't want to have to witness another.

Kimimaro scowled, but let his arms fall to his sides, the bones protruding from all over his body withdrawing back in, his whip crumbling to a fine dust, the bones he had fired doing the same. He took two quick backwards steps, then jumped into the air, vaulting back onto the balcony to land next to his two teammates.

"Pity you didn't get the chance to end her, Kimi-chan. Oh well! There's always next time, right?" Arashi said, clapping Kimimaro on the shoulder.

A disgruntled mutter was the only response he got, but he understood the bone-wielder's grumpiness. Hell, he'd be tearing the walls down if he was denied a kill like that. The girl had been far better than he'd expected, managing to avoid the worst of Kimimaro's attacks. Arashi had expected her to go down, arteries severed, with Kimimaro's first strike.

"Next match is Sakon versus Rock Lee!" The proctor announced.

"YOSH! Lee! Fight with the flames of Youth!" Bellowed a muscular, green-clad man, his body contorted into a ridiculous pose.

"YOSH! Gai-sensei! My flames of Youth are blazing!" A boy, dressed in exactly the same way, responded, placing one hand on his hip and extending the other, his hand in an exaggerated thumbs-up gesture.

"Something's flaming around here, that's for sure..." Kimimaro said in a stage whisper, causing the big green one to go red in the face, and the boy to look confused.

"Gai-sensei, what does..." The boy began.

"YOSH! GO FIGHT, LEE!" Gai interrupted, shoving the boy over the edge of the balcony.

Lee, despite his brief surprise, easily turned his graceless tumble into a smooth landing. Sakon muttered something under his breath and poked his brother in the side of the head until he woke with a splutter. He then stood on the railing, back to the arena, and paused for a moment.

"Why are we fighting a strange creature, Sakon? I thought we were supposed to be at the Chuunin Exams, or did I sleep through them?" Ukon asked, punctuating the sentence with a yawn.

"That... thing is our opponent, big brother. Can we make it quick? He creeps me out." Sakon replied.

"Of course, Sakon. You know you just have to ask." Ukon smiled.

Sakon dropped backwards off the railing, twisting and tumbling in midair so that he was facing Lee, landing in a crouch, one hand resting on the floor while Ukon's upper body emerged from his waist, the older brother putting his hands up in a mocking boxing pose.

The proctor looked slightly disturbed by the sight, but it was far from the oddest thing he'd ever seen, and so he signalled the start of the match.

"Begin!"

Lee blurred forwards, his fists and feet lashing out in a deadly flurry that sent Sakon flying, the smaller boy crashing into the arena wall with a thunderous crash, flinging up a cloud of dust. Lee stood back down into his ready stance, one hand behind his back, the other held out, ready to intercept any incoming opponent.

"Over here." A voice hissed in his ear, and the crowd watching gasped.

Lee's head whipped around, but there was nothing there.

"Perhaps here?" The voice muttered in his other ear.

Lee's head whipped around once more, but kept going, his neck ripping as though it was made of wet paper, his head managing to complete a full rotation before it landed on the floor with a wet thud, leaving his headless body standing there, until Ukon stepped forwards, materialising out of the standing corpse, which fell to the ground, breaking into hundreds of pieces as it did. He walked calmly over to his brother, who was still partially embedded in the wall, and sunk back into his body, his arms coming out of Sakon's back to push him the rest of the way out of the hole.

"W...winner, Sakon!" The proctor stuttered, still shocked at the enthusiastic boy's sudden demise.

Sakon made his way to the pile of bits that had been Lee, and bent down, snatching up the boy's severed head, then flinging it to Arashi in a single movement. Arashi smirked, and suddenly the head was engulfed in flame, the stink of burning hair and searing flesh filling the arena. Several of the Genin gagged and choked, a couple of them, including Tenten, vomiting noisily.

"That is ENOUGH!" The Hokage bellowed, slamming his walking stick into the ground. The entire arena fell silent as he made his way to the centre of the ring. "You have won, now leave the arena. The rest of you, if you try to mock the exams in a similar way again, your entire village will be disqualified from the exams, and will not be permitted to re-enter the exams in Konoha for five years. Am I understood?"

Arashi snorted, but snuffed the flame that had been covering Lee's decapitated head and tossed the scorched skull back into the arena, landing it perfectly on the pile of bits left behind by Ukon's final technique. The Hokage have him a hard stare, but the cruel grin on Arashi's face merely widened, and the Hokage muttered something about lunatics, then waved his hand, Lee's remains disappearing, leaving the arena empty of combatants once more.

"N...next match is Temari versus Akado Yoroi." The proctor announced.

The match was short, and ultimately fruitless for the Sound spy. His chakra-draining skills only worked if he could get skin-to-skin contact with his opponent, and Temari simply swatted him away with her fan every time he came anywhere near her. She eventually landed a clean hit, and sent the older man sprawling to the floor in a tangled heap, unconscious. Arashi made a mental note to have Yoroi killed.

Tsurugi Misumi's fight against the final Cloud Genin was far better, as he wrapped the girl in his snake-like limbs – copping a feel while he did so, Arashi noticed – and forced her to surrender very quickly. The girl's primary weapon was useless in such a small enclosed space, and she didn't seem to be particularly confident wielding anything else.

Kankuro faced off against another of the Rock ninja, the twin of the boy that Gaara had crushed earlier. The boy's rage at his sibling's death made him easy prey, and Kankuro hardly had to move from his hiding spot under the balcony, his puppet's poisons making quick work of the enemy Genin, dropping the boy unconscious in a matter of minutes.

Sakura was picked to fight Kabuto. Arashi would normally have wanted to watch the sadistic man pick the girl to pieces, slicing away at her skin and mind in equal measure until she would rather fling herself on her own kunai than continue to fight him, but Kabuto needed time to do his part for the upcoming plan, and so he forfeited almost immediately, claiming to be too exhausted from the forest to continue the fight, then dropping into a very convincing sleep right there on the arena floor. It was faked, of course, but done so well that none of the ninja would be able to tell he was anything but an over-excitable Genin who had overreached his limits.

Zaku and Kin were forced to fight each other, the wild-haired boy being quickly defeated due to the disadvantage of two broken arms. Kin was apologetic about it, but she still crushed him mercilessly.

The second to last fight was one Arashi had been waiting for, though it was a pity that the Uchiha was pitted against Dosu, of all people. Sasuke still looked battered and bruised, but Dosu had already suffered a humiliating defeat, not at the hands of Sasuke, but from the Uchiha's other two teammates. Dosu's main weapon, his prized metal arm, was dented and twisted out of shape, and so his sonic attacks were weak and had none of the disorienting effect that they usually threatened. Sasuke simply beat the one-eyed Sound ninja into the ground, the Uchiha's taijutsu vastly superior to that of the Sound Genin. Arashi rolled his eyes at the pathetic performance given by his subordinate. Another one to add to the scrapheap.

Then, finally, it was his turn.

"Next fight, Hebirou Arashi versus Hyuuga Neji."

Arashi's mouth twisted into a vicious grin. This would be fun. He had heard that this boy was the greatest talent to come from the Hyuuga clan in living memory, and he wanted to show this proclaimed 'genius' what his power amounted to. How he hated that word, how easily it was flung around – everyone seemed to be a 'genius', from the pathetic Sasuke to the lethal Hatake Kakashi, but he himself had never been described as such. He worked hard, so hard, to get to where he was. He would show this 'genius' that all his much-vaunted skill amounted to nothing in the face of one who had true power, that which was achieved through training intense enough to kill most people.

Arashi didn't bother with handseals. He simply gathered his chakra and stepped onto the arena floor next to the proctor, the intervening space flickering by in less than a heartbeat. It took ridiculous control to pull off even the simplest jutsu without handseals, and Arashi intended to show off every ounce of control he had worked for in this match.

Neji strode down the staircase, jumping down obviously beneath the haughty Hyuuga. He would enjoy breaking this one. They took up positions opposite one another, Arashi dropping into the relaxed, open stance that was the foundation for his favourite form of unarmed combat. Neji simply stood there, his blank white eyes focussed on the blond, a faint sneer on his face.

"It is fated that you will lose this match, Hebirou-san." Neji stated.

The proctor's hand came down.

"Begin!"

Neji blurred forwards, the flats of his palms lashing out in a complicated series of feints. Arashi waited until the boy committed to his attack, a simple thrust, then grabbed his wrist and stepped backwards, sinking deeper into his stance and turning as he did so, throwing the Hyuuga over his knee using the boy's own momentum.

Neji recovered quickly, rolling as he hit the floor, springing to his feet again and circling Arashi, who still didn't move. The Hyuuga rushed Arashi's exposed back, lunging into a complex whip-like motion using his entire arm, trying to slap his palm against one of the many exposed tenketsu on Arashi's back.

Arashi spun at the last moment, his right hand catching the Hyuuga's wrist once more, and he continued the motion, slamming his open left hand into Neji's throat, lifting the boy from his feet and planting him shoulders-first into the stone floor.

Neji seemed slightly dazed, but still managed to jump back out of combat range, now certain that he wanted to wait for Arashi to make his move. He began circling once more, but kept a safe distance away for the moment, knowing that he wouldn't be able to get through the blond's current defence with his regular attacks.

Arashi smirked wider, a drop of venom leaking from one of his fangs and falling to the floor, hissing as it hit the stone and began to eat away at it.

"I hear your eyes are very good, Ne-chan." He sneered, pulling two retractable shuriken from the seals on his shoulders, holding one in each hand. He flicked them open with a deft snap, the blades locking into place with a definitive click. "Try to use those amazing eyes of yours to keep alive for this."

With that, the shuriken leapt from his hands, seemingly of their own accord, though Neji could see the chakra strings controlling them due to his Byakugan. The viciously bladed implements circled Arashi's body, slowly spinning faster and faster until they each emitted a high-pitched whine as their blades cleaved the air.

Slowly, teasingly, Arashi sent one shuriken then the other towards Neji, each strike faster than the last, until the white-haired boy was dodging and weaving for all he was worth, hands flashing out to deflect the occasional attack that got too close. The shuriken came from every conceivable angle, straight lines turning into right angles at the last moment, long curves snapping into a straight attack at exactly the wrong time, but still the Hyuuga deflected every attack.

Arashi sneered and his hands snapped out into a flurry of complicated moves, weaving the shuriken into a web of deadly steel, a box that was slowly tightening around the desperate Hyuuga, and nicks began to appear on the other boy's skin. Neji was looking desperate.

"What's wrong, Ne-chan? I thought you were supposed to be a genius? Can you not escape from such a simple trap?" Arashi gloated.

Neji's eyes narrowed. He had been hoping to hold back most of his techniques until the finals, but this upstart was, though he hated too admit it, pushing his limits. He span suddenly, blasting chakra from every tenketsu on his body at once, destroying both shuriken in a single manoeuvre and digging a shallow pit in the stone floor.

Arashi's hands came together in a slow, mocking clap. "The _kaiten_. Very impressive, Ne-chan, I thought it was supposed to be a main family technique? Whipped dogs like yourself have no right to such a skill, or so I am told." He sneered.

Neji's lips peeled back into a snarl. "You know nothing! Everything is preordained! The great will destroy the weak, and you are weak! I will win, for my honour and the honour of my clan!" He hissed.

"Maa, you _are_ the clan head's nephew, no? Perhaps you could take over, if that other daughter of his went missing too." Arashi grinned, then slapped a hand to his head in mock regret. "Oh, but I forgot! You are _fated_ to remain forever beneath her feet, are you not? That Caged Rat seal, was it?"

Neji could feel his composure slipping. This boy was the most irritating person he had ever met, and he had been on a team with Lee, so that was saying something.

"The Caged Bird seal." He snapped, circling Arashi. "Yes, it keeps the branch family subservient to the main family."

"Ah, how sweet, then, it must have been, the news that your _darling_ cousin had been captured and sold. Do you lay awake at night, wondering where she is? How she is doing in the filthy Cloud dungeon she is no doubt imprisoned in? Do you get _hard_, thinking of how she writhes and screams beneath her captors, as they force themselves into her? I know it would work for me." Arashi licked his lips. "Does it make you _proud_, that in the next generation of Cloud Genin there will be many that call you Uncle? Perhaps you'd rather they called you _master_, hmm? I liked your work in the forest, by the way. Very _subtle. _All those Cloud children, dead and disfigured, their ghosts doomed to forever wander. I bet you liked that job. The feel of the knife cutting through flesh, the tang of blood in the air, the screams as they bucked and squirmed under you while you tore them, still alive, to pieces." Arashi panted, pupils dilated with ecstasy, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth. "Do you feel _superior_ to them, now? Does it make you feel good, that you inflicted a measure of pain on innocent children in revenge for someone you would rather have done the same to?"

Neji's face had been interesting to watch during Arashi's speech. It had passed through furious red into an enraged purple, and then had smoothed out into the tranquil, bloodless mask of utter fury that he currently wore.

"Be _silent_." He hissed, then sprung forwards, eyes dead. "You are within the range of my divination."

His hands flew forwards, slamming into Arashi's chest, shutting the tenketsu to his heart and lungs, respectively.

"Two Hands."

His palms smashed into Arashi again, shutting down his eyes and brain.

"Four Hands."

A flurry of strikes closed off Arashi's limbs.

"Eight Hands."

His strikes began to liquefy Arashi's internal organs.

"Sixteen Hands."

Blood burst form Arashi's mouth and ears as the furious Hyuuga continued to pummel his body.

"Thirty Two Hands."

The last few strikes lifted the limp ragdoll that had been Arashi from the ground, each attack so close after the previous that he rose higher and higher into the air.

"Sixty Four Hands." Neji announced.

Arashi fell to the ground, a limp tangle of limbs, smeared in blood and unable to move.

At least, that's what Neji thought.

"Imp...ressssivvve. Ne-ch...chan." Arashi gurgled.

Neji's eyes widened in shock. Arashi was dead. He'd seen the boy's heart destroyed, seen his every internal organ turned into paste. He couldn't speak.

"Pi...pity about... my _bloodlimit_." Arashi hissed, his face twisting into a rictus grin, showing blood-stained and broken teeth.

Neji shook his head. "You are _dead._ I saw it!"

Arashi's arms began to twitch, the ruins of his burst eyeballs swivelling in their sockets towards the sound of the Hyuuga's voice. "He...hehe...hehehe... seems …. like fate wasn't on your side." He blinked, and when his eyelids opened again his eyes were whole once more, focussed intently on the Hyuuga's.

"No! You were dead! You cannot heal from that!" Neji shouted, his voice holding a desperate edge.

Arashi planted one hand on the floor, flexing his fingers experimentally, then pushed himself up to a sitting position. "You hurt me, I'll give you that. But I let you. Seems like the mighty Hyuuga secrets are hardly worth having." He sneered, rolling his shoulders.

Neji charged, but he had been delayed too long by shock. Arashi flashed out of existence and appeared behind him, shaking his head sadly.

"Ne-chan. When I spoke you should have tried to kill me again. Seems like fate did not make you a genius." Arashi smirked once more. "It made you a fool."

Neji looked confused for a moment, but then he looked down and saw what Arashi had done to him. He saw the hole in his chest where his heart should have been. He fell face-forwards onto the arena floor, still looking confused as he hit the ground.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi licked his lips, removing the last traces of blood from around his mouth, then cleaned his blood-drenched hand in the same way. The Hyuuga heart sat comfortably in his stomach.

He wasn't quite sure why he'd eaten it. It had just felt... right. Besides...

He looked around at the horrified spectators.

It worked wonders for his reputation.


	21. Convergence, Part IV

**Convergence, Part IV**

Sakura gasped and thrashed, hands scrabbling furiously at her throat, futilely trying to stem the blood that was spurting from the vicious wound across it. Sasuke stood over her, bloody kunai in his hand, his face half-covered in black markings, his eyes cold even while tears ran down his cheeks.

"I am sorry. But for this power, I would sacrifice even you." He muttered, never taking his eyes from Sakura's as the life ebbed from them.

Arashi rolled his eyes in boredom. Seriously, the brat was so melodramatic. Arashi was stood next to Orochimaru, who was sat on his throne. The little drama was taking place in Orochimaru's throne room, watched by the rest of Arashi's squad, Kabuto, and Zabuza. The second round of the Chuunin Exams had finished a week ago, and they had returned to Sound to train for the third round, collecting a few souvenirs on the way out of Konoha.

**oXoXoXo**

_Sasuke carefully sliced the tomatoes, the slender kitchen knife blurring in his hand as he chopped his favourite food into exactly the right sized pieces. _

Sasuke, please, listen to me...

_He twitched, but his hands stayed steady as he finished his cutting and scraped the tomatoes into a bowl. He reached for the pan, unhooking it from where it hung on the rack._

I only want to help you... Only want to increase your power...

_He clenched his teeth and placed the pan on the range, then bent down and lit the fire with a simple _katon_ jutsu. Pain shot through his body, and he clutched at his neck. Stupid, stupid, he knew what happened when he used jutsu now._

Please, Sasuke, you know I speak the truth... With my help, your brother could never stand against you...

_Sasuke resolutely stood again, and proceeded to crack several eggs into another bowl. He splashed a little oil into the pan._

Power... You know that you want more, more than you can get here...

_He watched the oil, waiting as the range heated, studying the way that the oil began to ripple and shift as it approached the right temperature._

I can give you more, more than you ever dreamed of... Your clan will be avenged... Your clan will be reborn...

_He tipped the eggs into the pan, stirring them rapidly as they cooked, then, a few moments before they were done, added the diced tomatoes, blending the two together to form his favourite dinner. A treat for surviving the Exams so far. Weakness, he knew, but the red fruit had tempted him when he passed it in the market earlier today._

You know we can help you, Sasuke... You know our offer... You must simply decide how much your word is worth to you...

_Sasuke opened the fridge and spooned rice into his bowl, using some that he had made earlier today, the day after the Second Exam. The memories of the matches hit him again, and his grip on the spoon tightened enough to crack the wooden shaft._

You saw what my students could do... They are fools, to the last... You are no fool, Sasuke... Think of what you could achieve...

_He walked over to the table, placing the bowl of rice there, before returning to the stove and filling another bowl with his tomato and egg mix. Anger surged through him suddenly, and he lashed out, dashing the now-empty pan to the floor. He knew. He knew._

Yes, Sasuke... The village is holding you back...

_Yes. They had never appreciated him._

Sasuke. They never wanted you...

_No, they never had any respect for him..._

If they did, would they have held you back? You are more talented than your brother, you should have been a Jounin by now!

_Yes... He should have been... The village never wanted him... Never acknowledged him..._

You know what you have to do. I can help you, teach you, but only if you come with me. Please, Sasuke, you know that I want the best for you. It isn't as though you're leaving anything you care about, is it?

_No, he had no friends here... Only those who sought to use him... Who saw his blood, not him... Who saw him as a tool, not a person..._

Come to me. You know where to find me.

**oXoXoXo**

Sasuke's eyes bled slowly into the red of the Sharingan, the six tomoe swirling lazily in his irises. He gazed upon what he had done, the damage he had inflicted on another human being. The first person he had killed. She had been, perhaps, the closest thing he had to a friend, despite that she irritated him, angered him, held him _back_.

His first kill, and he felt no remorse. No emptiness. Just... the satisfaction of a job well done. A curiosity, a desire to memorize every arc of blood and spasmodic twitch. This was the first step on the path to power. The first of many. He told himself this, over and over again. Perhaps if he repeated it enough, he would believe it.

Orochimaru looked on in approval.

**oXoXoXo**

_Arashi stood outside the village, hidden in the trees, in a spot that would not be covered by any of the patrols. He knew, because Orochimaru was with him, and Orochimaru was always up to date on Konoha security measures. Besides, they were covered in a complex and subtle genjutsu, one of Orochimaru's best. No-one could detect them besides, perhaps, another of the Sannin or the Hokage himself._

_Arashi doubted that any of the three would be out for a midnight stroll in the vicinity, since neither Tsunade nor Jiraiya were within a hundred miles, and Sarutobi was probably in his tower, still dealing with the aftermath of the Second Exam. There had been far too many deaths, some of them cruel and caused by Konoha ninja, and he would need to act quickly to minimize any diplomatic damage done._

_They were waiting for Sasuke. They had been for almost four hours, but Arashi wasn't worried. The knockout drug he had used on his current captive would keep her unconscious for days, and Orochimaru had told him that the Uchiha would come, and so Arashi believed that the Uchiha would come._

_Arashi shifted slightly, adjusting the bundle slung over one shoulder and relieving a little pressure off his left leg. Normally, he would stay still the entire time he was waiting, as a security measure, but he was with his Oro-nii. There was no need for petty subtleties. The genjutsu would cover them, he trusted his Oro-nii to do far more than that._

_And, after many hours of waiting, Orochimaru's promises turned out to be true. He had claimed that the foolish ninja of Konoha had not noticed his Curse Seal on Sasuke – why should they, when the boy had gone to such lengths to hide it? Of course, his pink-haired teammate - the girl currently resting on Arashi's shoulder – might have seen the boy activate his level one seal when he first awoke, and so may 'Naruto', but they would keep quiet. After all, who knew what strange jutsu the Uchiha might have picked up? Besides, their Jounin instructor had let his skills grow rusty, his guilt over the death of his old teammate and, later, his sensei, driving him into a deep depression that he still had not broken out of, despite his apparent relaxed attitude. The man had immersed himself in S-ranked mission after S-ranked mission once his sensei had died, and then, when he had to be removed from duty due to psychological issues, he had stopped training altogether. He had only started up again once he had finally passed a Genin team, and so he was far below the standards of what would be expected of a ninja of his reputation. Oh, he was still deadlier than near any ninja you could name, but he could not live up to his reputation any more, and the little things were slipping by him, like the way one of his students winced almost imperceptibly whenever he channelled chakra. _

_Kakashi had his other two students to worry about as well, after all. One of them was terrified by her encounter with Arashi's team, and rightly so, and the other was very seriously injured in the forest. Could you blame the Jounin for missing the occasional hint from his last student that something was not quite right? Sasuke hadn't told anyone about the seal, after all. That was the beauty of the thing – it immediately began to warp your perceptions, flooding your body with hormones, increasing recklessness and anger, shortening temper and increasing susceptibility to persuasion. It helped that Sasuke was already so badly mentally damaged, that he had a degree of paranoia and an obsession with his brother. The seal capitalised on that, preying on his fears and needs, all the while steadily forcing his body to produce the natural chemicals that enhanced the effects of his instabilities. Orochimaru could also communicate with anyone bearing the seal over short distances, allowing him even more power over the boy. All told, Sasuke didn't stand a chance. His humiliation at Arashi's hands had set the stage, proving, to him at least, that he was still far too weak, that he was learning nothing from the village._

_So it was really no surprise when Sasuke snuck out of the village and made his way towards their hiding place, passing them to enter a small clearing just behind the hidden duo. Orochimaru nodded, telling Arashi that there were no enemies in the vicinity. They descended from the tree and crept up behind the young Uchiha._

"_Ah, Sasuke-kun. So nice to see that you are intelligent enough to know the truth of my offer. Shall we be off?" Orochimaru hissed._

_Sasuke took one look at the two standing behind him, his eyes shining with suppressed madness, and then his mouth twisted into a bitter grin. "Of course."_

**oXoXoXo**

Sasuke raised one hand to his face, wiping the blood from his skin. His calm façade slipped, suddenly, as he noticed something. Something that should be happening.

"What... why?" He choked out, face a mask of confusion. "It should... it must..."

Arashi's grin widened. Oh, how sweet the sight of this boy in distress was. This pathetic child, who nonetheless was competition for his Oro-nii's attention.

"What is the matter, Sasuke-kun?" Orochimaru muttered, unconcerned, the faint smile still lingering on his face.

"It should have... Mangekyou... Why?" Sasuke felt his eyes growing damp with tears. "Sakura... What was the _point!_"

**oXoXoXo**

Tenten threw her kunai, every blade landing in the bullseye. She threw her shuriken, the points embedding in the practise target, every hit a lethal strike. She withdrew every weapon she owned, used ever slashing and stabbing and bashing instrument she had.

It wasn't enough. She had lost her teammates. Lee had been ripped to pieces, his body defiled by that blond maniac.

She threw again and again, over and over, her arms growing sore. She didn't notice.

Then the blond had slaughtered Neji, letting him hope that he had beaten the Sound ninja before cruelly dashing that hope. Then the boy had...

Tenten felt bile rise in her throat. She pushed it down with an effort of will, concentrating once more on her weapons. Her arms had long since gone numb, but still she threw. She didn't feel the tears trickling down her face, even as they blurred her vision and ruined her aim.

**oXoXoXo**

Ino was sat in bed, propped up with a pillow. She was covered with devices, tubes feeding into her body, electrodes stuck to her skin to give warning of any change. She was not asleep, but nor was she awake. She just stared at the wall opposite her with her one good eye, seeing nothing.

Shikamaru and Chouji were sat in the room, next to her bed, playing a game of Shoji. They kept looking at her, checking that she was still there, hoping for an improvement. They had tried to hold her hands, to provide her with some comfort, some sign that there were people there who cared for her, but the moment they touched her she had started convulsing again, screaming in that high-pitched whine that was so shocking.

She was better now than she had been, as her eyes were open, and she was sat up under her own power. Her father had been working on her every day, trying to fix her mind, though neither of the boys had been told what exactly had happened to her, only that it was the fault of the blond Sound Genin.

Shikamaru knew that the boy was returning for the Third Exam.

He had a plan.

**oXoXoXo**

Gai and Kakashi sat together at the monument, Kakashi tracing the lines of Obito's name with one finger, the action so ingrained that it was subconscious now.

"It is my fault. I should never have entered them for the exam. I knew that there were risks, but I thought that they would be safe in Konoha." Gai said, his voice cold and empty.

"I thought the same. And look where that left us. We've each lost two students. I don't even know where mine are." Kakashi murmured, looking ashamed.

They sat together for another half hour, in silence, both lost in their own thoughts, then stood as one.

"I am neglecting Tenten, and an unwatered flower will never bloom." Gai announced.

"Suppose I should see if Naruto wants some training..." Kakashi grumbled, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his book in front of his face.

They exchanged one last look before shooting off to find their respective students. They didn't need words. Each understood exactly what the other was going through. Each knew that those responsible would be brought to justice, perhaps not today, but soon.

Very soon.

**oXoXoXo**

The Hokage rested his head in his hands and sighed, taking a brief rest before tackling the paperwork once more. The exams had been an utter disaster. More deaths than any Chuunin Exam since the last one Mist held, and that had been over twenty years ago. Worse than that, the majority of them had been caused by his own ninja. At lease, he hoped that was the case. Otherwise there was a team in the forest that had hunted down nearly every other team there and killed them in a variety of ways, which he highly doubted. There were lunatics in the exam, he had no doubt, the Sound team under Zabuza the worst of all – though had he expected any better from a group under the command of the legendary Demon of the Hidden Mist – but he didn't think that any of them had displayed the ability to track down all of the teams by themselves. Besides, the methods used to kill the teams had been very different, some of them not matching any of the skills used by any of the Genin in the preliminaries.

He sighed once more. He had apologies to write to Cloud for their teams, funerals to arrange for his own dead Genin, and names to engrave on the memorial stone. Every Leaf ninja that had died in the exams was going to be given a place there, no matter what Danzou wanted.

Sarutobi gave a strained smile.

Besides, the way that his ninja were behaving, it was likely that some of the causes of his stress would be removed once the exams were over.

With another sigh, he returned to his paperwork.

* * *

**AN: I took some liberties with the Curse Seal. But hey, that's probably the least of my sins ..**


	22. Convergence and Resolution

**AN: Alright, an announcement: This will not be finished. I don't enjoy writing this any more. I came into this with no real plot, and am frankly surprised to have got as far as I have. I'd like to thank everyone who read this, and apologise for not completing it. I've included what I already have written, and after that there is a synopsis of how I would end it. **

**I might, if I get in the mood and have a good idea for how, rewrite the basic premise of this as a better story.**

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* * *

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Arashi was excited. It was nearly time, their plan was so close to fruition he could almost taste it. The clamour of the watching crowd grated on his ears, however. Foolish, weak Leaf citizens, most of them. The only foreign ninja were with him, in the competitor's box, or up on the Hokage's personal seating area. The Kazekage, Raikage, Tsuchikage, and Otokage had all won the right to attend the exams as their countries had qualified teams, and all four were present.

At least, that's what everyone in Leaf thought, as the Kazekage had met with an unfortunate accident less than a week ago, and had been replaced.

Each Kage had two bodyguards with them – the Tsuchikage had brought Han and Roshi, the Raikage had brought Nii Yugito and a heavily tattooed man, the Kazekage had two veiled guards, their Sand ANBU tattoos the only exposed part of their bodies, and Tayuya and Kidoumaru were accompanying the Otokage, though Kidoumaru had hidden his extra arms inside his baggy shirt.

All in all, it was an obvious and impressive display of power from each of the villages involved. Cloud in particular had a powerful presence, as Killer Bee was present as a team leader as well, meaning that there were officially five Jinchuuriki at the arena. In reality, there were a full six. If Arashi had been the sort, this may have concerned him a little, as so many ninja of mass destruction in the same place couldn't bode well. But he was Arashi, and the thought of all six of them rampaging through Konoha – fantasy though it may have been – was making his eyes glaze and drool pool in his mouth. It was certainly making the Hokage nervous, as there were ANBU all over the stadium, which was good. It meant that they weren't on the walls, protecting the village from external attacks.

Arashi was practically bouncing now, eager to get into the ring and shed some blood. The stands were packed to bursting with ninja and civilians come to watch the show, and hopefully to watch some of their ninja perform well. Worthless scum, but their screams of terror and disgust would more than make up for it.

In the competitor's box with him were Sakon, Kimimaro and Tsuchi Kin from Sound; Tsurugi Misumi, Aburame Shino and Tenten from Leaf; Matsuda Hiroto, the spear-wielding Genin from Cloud; Gaara, Kankuro and Temari from Sand; and the last Genin from Rock, Fujikawa Natsume, the girl who had received the bye in the preliminaries.

Tenten was glaring incessantly at Sakon and Arashi, one hand resting on her kunai pouch, fingertips caressing the rings of the handles. She looked as though the only thing stopping her from attacking the two was the fact that she would not be allowed to follow through and kill either one. Shino, too, was glaring, though it could not be seen through his glasses, as he had seen how the Sound ninja acted during the Exams, and how they had treated their fallen Leaf opponents.

The proctor, who was stood in the middle of the arena, conversing with another Leaf ninja, seemed to be different to the one who had proctored the preliminaries, though Arashi wasn't sure, as he had hardly paid attention to the proctor, instead being more focussed on the upcoming combat.

The stadium was now completely full, and it was time for the matches to start. The other ninja in the arena disappeared, and the proctor turned to the crowd, his voice ringing out over all the other noise. He must have used a jutsu to make himself far louder.

"We regret to inform you that some of the scheduled matches will not take place due to the competitors withdrawing. So, first up, we have Tenten versus Tsuchi Kin!"

Tenten permitted a small smile to grace her face. She would be able to exact a small amount of revenge for her teammates by destroying this Sound girl. She would have preferred to be up against the ones responsible for her teammates' deaths, but the luck of the draw had decreed otherwise. Besides, there would be time for that later.

Tenten swung over the railing, her feet sticking to the outside wall, and ran down it to the arena floor. She stood in front of the proctor and placed a hand on her weapon scroll.

Kin looked at Arashi, who smirked. She paled and hurried down into the stairwell, making her way to the arena. In a few moments she was opposite Tenten, and ready to fight.

The battle was brief and brutal. The moment that the start was declared, Tenten leapt up and back, her scroll spiralling out around her, and began hurling a preposterous amount of weapons at Kin. The Sound kunoichi retaliated with flurries of ringing senbon, but her lightweight needles were no use against the barrage of heavier weapons, and she only managed to hit Tenten twice, a pair of superficial scratches. In return, she was skewered with at least a dozen blades, ripping into her with merciless speed. Only her attempts at dodging saved her life, though she collapsed to her knees within moments, the blood loss rendering her incapable of continuing.

"Well, that was... disappointing. Winner, Tenten!" The proctor declared, waving the medics onto the field. "Next fight is Fujikawa Natsume versus..." He paused, a look of disgust on his face, "Hebirou Arashi."

Arashi smiled broadly and rolled his shoulders. "I'm taking the stairs, Nat-chan. You wanna come with me? I'm sure I can make our trip...interesting." He leered, enjoying the green tinge that entered the girl's complexion.

She vaulted the balcony railing before he could say any more, so he simply chuckled and strolled down the stairs.

Halfway to the bottom, he was confronted by a pair of Rain ninja, who stood in front of him threateningly.

"Hey, kid, there's a lot of money riding on this match." The first said.

"Yeah, so you wanna lose this one, alright?" The second continued.

Arashi gave them a long, contemplative look, and, eventually, the first Rain ninja shifted uncomfortably.

"Come on, all you have to do is..."

Arashi's left hand clamped over the talking man's face, and then his arm straightened rapidly, slamming the ninja's head into the stone wall with a dull thud. His right foot whipped out in a stomping kick, snapping the second man's shin with a wet crack, dropping him to the floor.

"The fuck?" He growled, pulling his arm back, then smashing the captive Rain-nin's head into the wall once more. "Who the fuck do you think you are, you worthless sack of shit? You think you can give me orders?" He slammed the man's head into the wall, again and again, the dull thuds changing to wetter, slurping thumps. "You want to give me orders? You want to fucking push me around?" His teeth were clenched so tight that the downed ninja could hear them creaking. "Try to fucking push me now! TRY TO MAKE ME! FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU!" He yelled, punctuating each shout with another strike of head against rock.

The second Rain ninja, terrified and in pain, was trying to crawl away, using his arms and one good leg to push himself as far away as possible. He paled when he the noises of his companion's violent death stopped, and desperately tried to crawl faster. He could hear Arashi approaching, slow, sure footfalls getting closer and closer, at odds with the high-pitched giggling the boy was producing.

A heavy boot came to rest almost tenderly on his broken leg, on the exact point of the break. The Rain-nin let out a low groan of pain and fear as the pressure gradually increased. He could feel the bones grinding together, and that was almost worse than the pain itself.

"Trying to run? Trying to fucking RUN!" Arashi snarled, grinding the heel of his boot harder. "Think you're a tough guy? Think you're hot shit, trying to push around a kid?" He leaned in closer, and his voice lowered to a hiss. "I want to hear you _scream._"

The Rain ninja took to opportunity to lash out with a kunai, scoring a clean cut across the boy's face. But... he'd been allowed to hit him? Arashi hopped back a step, licking the blood that was running down his face, and his face twisted into a cheerful grin.

The Rain ninja had flipped onto his back so that he could get a better view of the boy, but he didn't see the steel-tipped boot that slammed into his groin, enveloping him in white-hot agony and sliding him five feet down the corridor. That giggling, that insane fucking giggling had started up again, like a four-year old on a sugar rush. Another kick, this one crashing into his ribs, rolling him at an angle until he smashed into a wall. Another kick, and another, and he was coughing blood and rolling and hitting walls and pissing himself, and he couldn't _think_ any more, and all that was left was that _fucking_ laughter...

Arashi kicked and kicked and kicked, the red haze covering everything but his target. He'd _dared_, he'd fucking _dared_ to insult him like this. Who the fuck did he think he was? Did he think it was funny? Well, who was laughing now? Who the _fuck_ was laughing now, huh?

"Get up! Get the _fuck_ up and face me, you cum-swilling prick!" Arashi yelled, putting the boot in once again.

Nothing. Not a sound from the battered remnants of the man. The floor looked odd, too. Not stone any more. Huh, that was strange. Arashi looked up, meeting the gaze of the shocked proctor and his equally shocked opponent.

The entire arena was quiet, everyone awed into silence by the display of savage ferocity that had just occurred, the insane blond boy emerging from the tunnel, kicking a bloody and ruined corpse in front of him like a toy, laughing the whole while.

**oXoXoXo**

Gaara's mouth was hanging open, his breath coming in quick, excited pants. This boy had shown his existence, proved it in all its bloodied glory, and now Mother was shouting, screaming in excitement, her voice bouncing off the insides of his skull, a single word, repeating over and over.

_Kill._

It's not like the plan was intact any more, right? And he'd already flooded the competitor's box with sand, just little enough that it couldn't be seen, but enough to kill everyone. Mother liked that idea. But then he had to follow the plan, if he didn't, there would be fewer to prove himself against. So he would follow it. His way. For now.

Gaara's fist clenched, and anyone not wearing a Sand or Sound headband was shredded into a bloody pulp. Sakon pouted, having been deprived of his fun, but knew that he had more important things to worry about at the moment – Arashi was still in the arena.

No-one had bothered to tell Gaara to spare Misumi.

**oXoXoXo**

Arashi sprung at the proctor, wind-sheathed gauntlets slashing out to try to rip and tear, but the man had danced back out of reach and retaliated with a single senbon, which then multiplied into hundreds at a single handseal. Arashi's _kawarimi_ switched him with his competitor, and the girl fell, studded with dozens and dozens of steel spikes.

_He's a quick fucker, I'll give him that_, Arashi thought, using his split-second reprieve to focus his chakra and form a jutsu, striking forwards with a palm-heel that sent a solid ball of air shooting towards the proctor.

The man dodged the attack, and the next three blasts Arashi sent towards him, then launched himself into the air just in time to avoid the two clones that erupted from the dirt beneath him, though one nicked him with a kunai. The proctor had produced more senbon from somewhere, and was firing them with deadly accuracy at Arashi, who was hard pressed to dodge them all, and got a punctured forearm for his troubles.

Arashi's next _kawarimi_ switched his place with that of the proctor, though he held little hope that it would actually hurt the man, so he kept moving, running towards the forest on one side of the arena, hoping that the cover would allow him to put together a few seconds for a trick or two, let him regain the edge, but the proctor was having none of it, using the _shunshin_ to arrive in front of him and cut him off, swiping at Arashi's eyes with a handful of senbon and raking a nasty set of furrows across his face.

The hit came with a cost, however, as Arashi took the opportunity to grab hold of the proctor's arm and shift his weight, bringing his free hand up into a lethal palm strike that snapped the man's arm at the elbow.

With a tightly controlled grunt of pain, the proctor used the opportunity to pump the handful of senbon into Arashi's torso again and again, twisting and raking as he did so, but it was too little, too late, as Arashi brought his teeth down on the proctor's exposed shoulder, sinking them gum-deep then trying to use his own _shunshin_ to withdraw, willing to play a game of tag until the venom did it's work.

It was not to be, however, as he found himself unable to move, while his assailant kept shredding at him, and he could feel the cold, leaden weakness sinking into his bones that indicated poison.

_Shit,_ he thought, _can't afford to be put down long at a time like this! Oro-nii's trick should fix it, though, just need to pull away..._

But it wasn't the poison holding him in place. Up in the stands, someone else had just pitched into the battle.

**oXoXoXo**

In the Hokage's box, the Hokage stood the instant that Arashi kicked the corpse into the arena, ready to intervene, his four ANBU guard closing around him, but before he could issue any orders a blast of water cut two of them in half, and the other two's armour folded in on them, crushing and cutting, killing them almost instantly.

He turned to face the attackers, and his eyes widened when he saw who it was. The Kazekage had ripped off his hat and veil, revealing that, instead of the expected short, red-brown hair of the Fourth Kazekage, he had long, shaggy, black hair. His outstretched hand was pointed at the two crushed ANBU, and the Hokage recognized him immediately. The Third Kazekage. But he was gone!

He was further shocked when he saw who the two bodyguards were. One had pale skin, short white hair and red eyes, and was just lowering his hands from a seal. The other had dark skin and long brown hair, and his hands were flickering through handseals almost too fast for the Hokage to see. He finished the sequence, and slammed his hands into the ground. Trees sprung forth, erupting from the ground so fast that the Raikage's bodyguards were launched out of the box, neither being fast enough to avoid them.

The Tsuchikage was nowhere to be seen, the old goat having fled the moment the battle had started, but his bodyguards were strolling out of the box into the crowd, thick streamers of steam gathering around Han, while the air around Roshi wavered with extreme heat. Within moments they were gone, disappeared into the panicking crowd, leaving a trail of scorched civilians in their wake.

The Hokage had no time to worry about this, however, as he was concentrating on trying to hold off three Kages at once. If he had a moment to catch his breath, he would be able to get off one of his more powerful jutsu, but for the moment he was dodging swarms of shrapnel and various pieces of metal, while simultaneously blocking the hand-to-hand assault from the First and Second Hokages.

The Raikage chose this point to weigh in, charging straight through a tree in a shower of splinters to clothesline the Kazekage, following up with a lethal, electrically charged elbow-drop that splattered the Kazekage's head like an overripe melon. It came as something of a shock when the man stood back up again, his head piecing itself back together, but that allowed the Third to recognise the technique. _Edo Tensei_. These three men, all of whom were indisputably dead – save perhaps the Kazekage, who had simply disappeared one day – were simply possessing three corpses.

There was only one person still living, besides him, who knew the skill. Orochimaru. His traitorous student, the man who the Leaf ninja all thought was dead, thanks to the deception he and Jiraiya had wrought. They had decided that if the village knew that Orochimaru had escaped their two best ninja, practically uninjured, there would be panic. Not only that, but there was no way they could hunt him down. It would be impossible to dedicate the forces needed to kill the man without crippling the village, and most of those assigned to hunt him would likely never return. They simply couldn't afford the losses.

So they had claimed to have killed him. And now Sarutobi's decision not to pursue his student had come back to haunt him. If only he hadn't been so soft on him, had killed him when he had the chance... But now was not the time.

There were only two ways to defeat an opponent created through _Edo Tensei_. The first – and favoured – was to kill the summoner, as this would sever the bonds holding the spirits to the mortal plane. This would not be happening any time soon, however, as Sarutobi had no idea where Orochimaru was at this moment. Jiraiya might know, and he was in the village at the moment, but there was no time to contact him. Besides, the Snake could be half a continent away. Which left the Hokage the second option, to seal the souls away at the cost of his own life, something that he was understandably reluctant to do.

While he was deliberating, the Raikage continued to pummel the Third Kazekage, each blow snapping a limb or tearing something off, only for it to regrow nearly instantly. It hardly distracted the re-animated leader of Sand, although it did turn his attention from the Third to the Raikage.

_If only I could force them to focus on that over-muscled moron, I'd get the time to figure something out. It'd serve the young bastard right, too, with all the things he's tried to pull over the years..._ The Hokage thought.

It was too late for this, however, as the Third Kazekage had managed to throw the Raikage back into the railing, which then wrapped around the muscle-bound man and began to distort and constrict, tearing and crushing as the Raikage struggled against it. With a crackle of electricity and the stink of ozone, the Raikage's entire body was sheathed in lightning, and he managed to struggle free of the metal binding him, though not without damage. He was uniquely unsuited to fighting this kind of enemy, as the Kazekage was simply soaking every hit the man delivered, while managing to score the odd attack himself. The First was turning from his battle with Sarutobi every so often to direct the new-grown forest to attack the Raikage, forcing him to leave opening which the Kazekage could exploit, hammering the massive man with enormous clouds of twisted metal that were moving so quickly that they penetrated his lightning armour.

_It's not like I'm having a picnic myself..._ He'd suffered a blow that had cracked most of his ribs and had already lost several toes to a too-late dodge. _But then, I did train with Hashirama-san and Tobirama-sensei, and their moves haven't changed at all, while I have advanced. _ Sarutobi managed to find enough time to form a pair of seals, and slammed his hands into the ground. The ground rose up around his opponent's ankles, pinning them in place for a few moments.

This was enough for the Third Hokage to launch a massive mudslide, pinning both of his opponents, the Raikage and the Kazekage. The next pair of attacks would likely kill the Raikage, but, again, why should he care? It was more important to hold the three re-animated Kages in place than it was to ensure the survival of the underhanded Raikage, and, well, if his plan worked, he wasn't going to be here for them to complain to. A wave of roiling fire erupted from Sarutobi's mouth, engulfing all four Kages trapped in the mud in front of him and baking the mud into rock-solid clay. The Hokage's next technique forced the solid clay into spikes, stabbing through anyone caught in it, holding them fast and doing massive damage.

_Wait, why... why are there still civilians here! _The Hokage blanched as he realized just how many people he'd accidentally killed, and felt the tugging of an area-covering genjutsu on his senses, lulling him towards sleep and concealing his sight of anyone that didn't directly attract his attention. _Of course, Orochimaru would never pass up the opportunity to cause me more pain. Enough of this, if I do not finish them, thousands more will die. _

His hands snapped together into a cross seal, and three _kage bunshin_ appeared. He sent them off while he started his seals, his hands steady and calm even as he resigned himself to death. He finished the technique and turned his head to see the Shinigami floating in the air behind him. The hideous beast began its ritual, raising its left hand high, letting its prayer beads fall, twisted, around its arm. Black marks crawled across the surface of its skin, and its hand lashed out to embed itself in the figure suspended before the God of Death.

Sarutobi felt his skin go cold and his heart stop. _One minute_, a voice hissed in his head, and his clones burst into action, grabbing hold of the now-reformed Kages. He could feel the pressure on his chakra, the enormous drain as he wrestled free the trapped souls of his two predecessors and the Third Kazekage. This much chakra use would kill him. Not that this was an issue any more, but if he ran out of chakra before he sealed the souls then the jutsu would only be a partial success, and at least one of the Kages would remain free to wreak havoc upon his village, and then someone else would have to sacrifice their life to destroy the survivor. No, he had to do this right.

With a final burst of chakra, he felt the three souls slide clear of their host bodies, and then staggered back at the vicious impact to his stomach. His three clones disappeared in clouds of smoke, and though they were obscured from his view by the dense fog he could tell from the received memories that he had been successful.

He fell to his knees as all feeling left his limbs, and looked up at the sky, smiling.

_Jiraiya's going to kill me for this..._

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**OK, this is the end of what I had written. After this, lured in by the prospect of so many Jinchuuriki, Akatsuki appear in force. They quickly capture most of the Jinchuuriki, until Deidara and Kakuzu betray and kill their parters, turning to Orochimaru's side in exchange for money (Kakauzu) and the freedom to blow up whatever he wants (Deidara). The battle turns from a simple war of extermination against Konoha to a three-way pitched battle between the loyal Akatsuki trying to escape with their captives, Oto and Suna trying to kill the remaining Akatsuki and Konoha forces, and Konoha trying to survive and drive away the S-rank missing nin in their midst. **

**This is when Pein decides that he's had enough and uses Shinra Tensei, so much the same effect as in the manga. This kills most of the attacking and defending forces, and badly injures Arashi, ripping off both his legs and an arm. This, the most damage he's ever taken, triggers a full-out Kyuubi rampage. Orochimaru uses the distraction to pull back, escaping with most of his surviving forces. Arashi is finally taken down by Itachi and Pein working in unison, and the surge of toxic chakra has taken its toll, leaving him nearly-crippled and weak. **

**The story would end with Orochimaru sat in his base, plotting how to compensate for the loss of a useful pawn.**


End file.
